Training and Education for PC Recruits

The implementation of the Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) is a College of Policing mandated change that requires all Police Forces to put in place new recruitment and education pathways. The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has supported PEQF as an important step towards formally recognising policing as a profession. The MPS sees investment in the capability of their workforce as integral to providing a good service to the public. Increasing the rigour of academic, values-based and operational learning will help officers better undertake the varied duties they perform and manage the complex challenges of modern policing.

The scope of the change is significant and requires the appointment of a suitable ‘learning partner’. The MPS is therefore seeking to award a contract for delivery of the new recruit training pathways associated with the PEQF with the following key aspects:

• Procured via the Yorkshire Purchasing Organisation Apprenticeship Framework;

• The duration of the contract covers implementation (1 year) and recruitment of Officer Intakes for 5+2 years, with an additional 3 years to support learners through their learner journeys;

• This will primarily be funded by a combination of existing MPS budgets and Apprenticeship levy funding;

Approval to continue with the planned procurement action was endorsed by the Deputy Mayor of Policing and Crime in April 2019 when the Full Business Case was approved (PCD 575). This endorsed the MPS’s approach to delivering PEQF via a Partnership with an external lead

provider.

Following the Government’s announcement of further growth in police officers, the value of this contract has been increased since the Full Business Case was agreed. It is also proposed that the existing internal police training capability will be retained, though with some enhancements to closely mirror the PEQF routes, in order to manage the anticipated volume.

Following discussion at PIB and with the Deputy Mayor in April 2019, additional independent assurance activity centred on both commercial readiness and wider organisational readiness has been undertaken. This work has been used to inform the basis of the decisions and recommendations outlined in this paper.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to:

• Approve the award of a five year contract, with a possible two year extension, to Babcock in relation to the delivery of Police Education Qualification Framework compliant recruit training for the MPS in the form of Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship and Degree Holder Entry Programme pathways.

• Set the maximum value of the Babcock contract, inclusive of any extension, at £309.2m (factoring in anticipated growth in police officer numbers).

1. Introduction and background

1.1. The College of Policing (the CoP) has designed a Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) to be adopted by all police services nationally that sets minimum education qualification levels by level of practice or rank. PEQF is an important step towards formally recognising policing as a profession and supporting the professional development of Police Officers and Police Community Support Officers.

1.2. Implementation of PEQF will be phased by career level, with changes impacting officer entry routes first. All Constable Recruits will be required either to have a degree on entry or work towards a degree-level qualification as part of their training. Recruits with a degree will work towards a two year Graduate Diploma and those without will work towards a three year nationally recognised Degree Apprenticeship. The MPS will implement the two new PEQF pathways in September 2020 alongside the retention of an internal training route for non-degree holders who elect not to pursue an apprenticeship route.

1.3. The education and development requirements for recruits under PEQF represent a significant change for the Metropolitan Police Service (the MPS). There is a more rigorous curriculum, increased assessment and accreditation, and a greater focus on applying learning in the operational environment. It will see the adaptation of more innovation approaches to learning and a move to consistent local support and training delivery ultimately allowing recruits to benefit from degree level accreditation for the training that they have undertaken.

2. Issues for consideration

2.1. The implementation of PEQF initial entry routes contributes to the achievement of the MOPAC Police Crime Plan 2017-21 by equipping new Police Officer recruits with the right skills and experience to effectively Police London and the changing nature and complexity that is associated with this.

2.2. The additional rigor and quality of the education and development recruits will undertake as part of PEQF requires an increase in the ‘protected learning time’ they are given. The MPS have options for how to manage the impact of this and will work with Babcock to minimise this.



2.3. The implementation of the key elements of the organisation design related to the Centre of Expertise and Local Leadership and Development functions need to progress rapidly if the MPS are to deliver PEQF on schedule.



2.4. The procurement outlined is not for an ‘off the shelf’ service and the police apprenticeship market is a new one. Babcock is an experienced provider and the MPS have undertaken a range of reference visits with their existing customer base, but will need to work closely with them to get the right education experience for recruits and ultimately the public.

2.5. The MPS have run a competitive procurement process based on a specification developed by a broad cross-section of stakeholders across the MPS. This is a new type of contract for the MPS and nationally in policing, and therefore there are commercial

risks relating to entering into, managing and sustaining the commercial relationship with our new partner which will need to be acknowledged. An independent comprehensive commercial and organizational readiness review has been conducted to provide additional assurance to award the contract.



2.6. The MPS are not obligated to put specific levels of demand through the contract or split demand across the two different pathways in a defined way. However, there are price bands within the contract for both Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) and Degree Holder Entry Programme (DHEP) which means that the volume of recruits being put through will impact on the ‘unit price’ being paid by the MPS, with larger volumes lowering the price per candidate. Therefore, recruit demand will impact on the total costs being paid by the MPS. Babcock has confirmed to the MPS that they are able to scale up to deal with the larger demand volumes that we are currently modelling linked to officer growth should this be required.

2.7. The MPS have conducted market research to test the attractiveness of the new entry pathways with representative groups in London. This research has outlined that the new entry routes are more attractive for a large majority of potential candidates. However, there will continue to be some uncertainty regarding whether the new entry routes can support recruitment at the required levels and / or whether they will attract degree holders and apprentices in the proportions anticipated. The MPS will monitor this closely and learn from early adopters as their models mature (e.g. West Midlands).

2.8. In light of the Government’s announcement about a national growth in police officers and the uncertainty of allocation the MPS is proposing to both increase the headroom in this contract and maintain an internal delivery route for police training. This will ensure there is adequate capacity to train the anticipated volume of recruits.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. The report requests approval to set the total value of the Babcock contract at £309.2m, a 43% increase on the original estimated value of £216m. The increase in the contract headroom is purely to factor in anticipated growth in police officer numbers and is not a guarantee of spend.

3.2. The report confirms that this will primarily be funded by a combination of existing MPS budgets and Apprenticeship levy funding.

4. Legal Comments

4.1. MOPAC is a contracting authority as defined in the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (the PCRs). All awards of public contracts for goods or services valued at £181,302 or more must be procured in accordance with the PCRs. This report confirms that the request exceeds the £181,302 threshold and therefore the PCRs are engaged.

4.2. Paragraph 4.14 of the MOPAC Scheme of Delegation and Consent provides that the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime (DMPC) has delegated authority to call in for decision any MPS proposal to award a contract for £500,000 or above. 

4.3. Specific legal advice has confirmed that the increase of the total contract value and awarding on the basis of £309m rather than £216m (original value in the Full Business Case) is a compliant contract award. Legal advice has also confirmed that whilst the Invitation to Tender gave an indicative volume of 1,800 (plus or minus 25%) it also stated that that this figure should be taken as a guide only recognising that volumes could change.

5. Commercial Issues

5.1 An independent comprehensive commercial and organizational readiness review has been conducted to provide additional assurance to award the contract.

5.2 Elements of the new recruit training paths will be delivered on Partner’s sites across London. This will reduce the estate requirement of the MPS Learning and Development delivery teams. However, Tutor Constable growth posts would need to be factored into BCU estates designs. These requirements will be kept under review by the MPS Property Services Directorate.

6. GDPR and Data Privacy

6.1. The MPS is subject to the requirements and conditions placed on it as a 'State' body to comply with the European Convention of Human Rights and the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018. Both legislative requirements place an obligation on the MPS to process personal data fairly and lawfully in order to safeguard the rights and freedoms of individuals.

6.2. Under Article 35 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Section 57 of the DPA 2018, Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) become mandatory for organisations with technologies and processes that are likely to result in a high risk to the rights of the data subjects.

6.3. The Information Assurance and Information Rights units has been consulted to ensure the project meets its compliance requirements.

6.4. A DPIA has been completed for this project. The project will ensure a privacy by design approach, which will allow the MPS to find and fix problems at the early stages of any project, ensuring compliance with GDPR. DPIAs support the accountability principle, as they will ensure the MPS complies with the requirements of GDPR and they demonstrate that appropriate measures have been taken to ensure compliance.

7. Equality Comments

7.1 One of the overarching benefits intended from the College’s introduction of PEQF is to improve equality and diversity within Policing. Following engagement with the MPS Strategy, Diversity & Inclusion team, a number of opportunities, risks and effective mitigations have been identified and detailed within our Equality Impact Assessment and implementation plans moving forward.

8. Background/supporting papers

Annex A – PIB IAM Part One, Contract Award Decision

Annex B – Contract Award Decision Supplementary Paper