Much of the work of the Jersey Police Authority takes place away from public view.
Simon Harman (pictured), Chair of the Authority, explains how independent oversight works in practice and why it matters to policing in the Island.
Most Islanders will have regular reason to see or hear about the work of the States of Jersey Police, but far fewer will come across the Jersey Police Authority. That is understandable. Our work is largely carried out behind the scenes, but it plays an important part in making sure that policing remains effective, accountable and focused on the needs of the community.
The Authority is made up of a Chair and members who bring a range of professional experience and perspectives. Our decisions are collective, and our role is clear: we do not direct investigations or make operational decisions. Those responsibilities belong to the Chief Officer and senior leadership team. Instead, we focus on the wider picture, including performance, priorities, resources and future readiness, while providing independent oversight on behalf of the public.
Our job is to step back and look at the wider picture. We consider performance, the delivery of agreed priorities, the use of resources and whether the service is properly prepared for what lies ahead. We also provide an important link between the police, government and the public, while maintaining the independence needed to carry out meaningful oversight.
Looking beyond the numbers
A large part of our work involves reviewing information about police performance. Statistics matter, but on their own they can be misleading. An increase or decrease in a particular category may reflect changes in reporting, public confidence, police activity or wider social trends. The figures are often the start of the discussion rather than the end of it.
We meet regularly with the Chief Officer and senior officers to discuss performance, current risks, staffing pressures and progress against the Policing Plan. We want to understand what is working well, where difficulties are emerging and what is being done about them. Where actions have been agreed, we also expect to see them followed through.
Our role is to ask the questions the public would reasonably expect to be asked. Effective scrutiny recognises the professionalism of officers and staff while challenging where explanations are unclear or progress is lacking. We are not there to run the police service, but to ensure important issues are understood and acted upon.
That requires an open and constructive relationship with the States of Jersey Police, but it must never become a comfortable relationship in which difficult matters are avoided. Effective oversight depends on accurate information, honest discussion and a willingness on all sides to acknowledge both good performance and areas where improvement is needed.
People, standards and scrutiny
Policing asks a great deal of the people who do it. Officers and staff deal with distressing events, vulnerable people and situations in which decisions have to be made quickly and under considerable pressure. The demands are not only operational; they can also be personal and emotional.
For that reason, recruitment, retention, training, leadership and wellbeing remain central to the Authority’s work. The service cannot deliver consistently for the public unless its people are properly trained, supported and led. We therefore look not only at staffing numbers, but also at whether the organisation has the right skills, experience and resilience across its teams.
We also place real value on independent inspection, and the Authority has recently been considering how this should be carried out in the future. Independent inspection is an important part of public assurance. It provides an external view of performance, identifies strengths and weaknesses, and supports improvement. Any future inspection model must be proportionate to Jersey while remaining robust enough to provide meaningful scrutiny.
A further area of recent work has been the strengthening of arrangements supporting police misconduct proceedings. This has included the recruitment of Legally Qualified Persons who can provide independent legal expertise where required. The public must be confident that concerns about police conduct are dealt with properly, while officers and staff are equally entitled to a process that is fair, impartial and legally sound.
A stronger connection with the public
Oversight cannot take place solely through meetings, reports and performance data. The Authority also needs to hear directly from Islanders. Our open meetings give members of the public an opportunity to hear about policing priorities, put questions to the Authority and senior police officers and better understand some of the pressures facing the service.
We want those meetings to be useful rather than ceremonial. Public questions should be given proper time, answers should be clear and difficult subjects should not be sidestepped.
There will not always be a simple answer, but people are entitled to an honest explanation of the position and of what is being done.
We will not always agree with every view that is put to us, but we must listen. Independent oversight only has value if it remains connected to the community it serves. Keeping the public interest at the centre of our work is not an occasional exercise; it is the reason the Authority exists.
Preparing for the future
The demands on the States of Jersey Police will continue to change. Traditional crime remains an important part of policing, but the service must also respond to cybercrime, online fraud, domestic abuse, safeguarding concerns, financial crime and incidents involving mental health and vulnerability. Many of these cases are complex, resource intensive and require specialist knowledge.
Jersey’s size brings both advantages and challenges. Strong community links can help the police understand local concerns and build trust, but a smaller service must still retain specialist capability and be ready to deal with major or unusual incidents. That requires careful planning and strong working relationships with other agencies and jurisdictions.
As an international finance centre, Jersey must also be able to respond effectively to financial and cross-border crime. That means maintaining the right investigative skills, using modern tools and building effective external partnerships. The nature of this work changes quickly, and the service must be able to keep pace.
Technology will inevitably play a greater part in policing. Used well, it can reduce unnecessary administration, improve access to information and allow officers to spend more time on work that requires professional judgement. It also brings risks. New systems must be introduced with proper attention to security, privacy, proportionality and public confidence.
Resources are about more than officer numbers. The service requires the right mix of frontline policing, specialist skills, technology, leadership and support, and the Authority’s role is to ensure those resources match the risks the Island faces.
Jersey remains a safe place to live, work and visit, but that position should never be taken for granted. It depends on effective policing, strong leadership, sensible investment and meaningful accountability. The Jersey Police Authority will continue to support good work, challenge where improvement is needed and help ensure that the States of Jersey Police remain trusted, capable and ready for the future.
You can find out more about the Jersey Police Authority through their website. You can also get in touch with the Authority by email: [email protected]
