Freedom of Information request
- Strategic Oversight and Priority Setting
· Develops and publishes the Police and Crime Plan outlining local policing priorities, informed by community consultation.
· Ensures the Chief Constable’s operational decisions align with this plan and deliver measurable outcomes for public safety.”
· Since April 2014 how many times has a institutional major child abuse investigation been part of the police and crime plan and how many times has the PCC ensured the CC is delivering measurable outcomes. - Performance Scrutiny
· Monitors HMICFRS Inspections: Challenges force leadership on critical failures, such as the consistent “inadequate” ratings in child safeguarding, missing persons responses, and crime prevention.
· Demands Action Plans: Requires the Chief Constable to address deficiencies identified in reports (e.g., the 2025 HMICFRS child safety failures) and tracks progress through regular briefings.
· Conducts Deep-Dive Reviews: Holds public hearings or private sessions with senior officers to scrutinize specific issues (e.g., child exploitation investigations).”
· Since April 2014 how many times has the PCC challenged the CC on critical failures and/or how many times has the PCC demanded a action plan and/or ordered a deep dive into operational magnolia. - Budget and Resource Oversight
· Sets the annual police budget (e.g., £95.4 million in 2024) and precept (local tax contribution).
· Ensures efficient resource allocation, especially in high-risk areas like child protection and vulnerability response, where under-resourcing exacerbates failures.
· How many times has the PCC ensured that operation magnolia had efficient resource. - Victim Support and Advocacy
· Commissions victim services (e.g., trauma support, advocacy programs) and ensures police investigations prioritize victim safety and dignity .
· Addresses systemic gaps, such as victims being misdirected to generic fraud leaflets instead of receiving specialized support.
· How many times have the PCC ensured that child victims from operation magnolia have received specialist support. - Complaint Handling and Public Trust
· Oversees the force’s handling of public complaints against officers, ensuring transparency and accountability.
· Promotes ethical standards and intervenes when leadership culture contributes to institutional failures.
· How many times has the PCC intervened in operation Magnolia following a complaint from many victims. - Leadership Accountability
· Appoints, suspends, or dismisses the Chief Constable for misconduct or performance failures (e.g., dismissal of Sean Price in 2012 for gross misconduct).
· Reviews senior leadership’s adherence to ethical standards, particularly when HMICFRS cites “inappropriate behavior of senior leaders” as a factor in systemic failure.
· How many times has the PCC looked at the leadership of operation magnolia regarding systematic
failures.
The PCC’s role is pivotal in transforming inspection failures into actionable change, ensuring - Cleveland Police meets its duty to protect vulnerable communities. How many times has the PCC looked at operation magnolia to ensure the Cleveland the police were meeting their duties.
Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner response
To support the handling of this request I have split it into six elements as below;
- Since April 2014 how many times has an institutional major child abuse investigation been part of the police and crime plan and how many times has the PCC ensured the CC is delivering measurable outcomes.
- Since April 2014, how many times has the PCC challenged the CC on critical failures and/or how many times has the PCC demanded an action plan and/or ordered a deep dive into operational magnolia.
- How many times has the PCC ensured that operation magnolia has efficient resource.
- How many times have the PCC ensure that child victims from operation magnolia have received specialist support.
- How many times has the PCC intervened in operation magnolia following a complaint from victims
- How many times has the PCC looked at operation magnolia to ensure the Cleveland police were meeting their duties.
I will respond to each element in turn;
- Under section 14(2) of the Freedom of Information Act, public authorities do not have to comply with a request which is identical, or substantially similar to a previous request submitted by the same individual, unless a reasonable period has elapsed between those requests.
In addition, Section 14(2) can be applied when the public body has previously provided the same requestor with the information in relation to an earlier Freedom of Information Request.
As a result, I have assessed this part of the request as being substantially similar to a previous response relating to reference 0029-24/25, 0016-25/26 and 0017-25/26. - Under section 14(2) of the Freedom of Information Act, public authorities do not have to comply with a request which is identical, or substantially similar to a previous request submitted by the same individual, unless a reasonable period has elapsed between those requests.
In addition, Section 14(2) can be applied when the public body has previously provided the same requestor with the information in relation to an earlier Freedom of Information Request.
As a result, I have assessed this part of the request as being substantially similar to a previous response relating to reference 0017-25/26. - Under section 14(2) of the Freedom of Information Act, public authorities do not have to comply with a request which is identical, or substantially similar to a previous request submitted by the same individual, unless a reasonable period has elapsed between those requests.
In addition, Section 14(2) can be applied when the public body has previously provided the same requestor with the information in relation to an earlier Freedom of Information Request.
As a result, I have assessed this part of the request as being substantially similar to a previous response relating to reference 0016-25/26. - Under section 14(2) of the Freedom of Information Act, public authorities do not have to comply with a request which is identical, or substantially similar to a previous request submitted by the same individual, unless a reasonable period has elapsed between those requests.
In addition, Section 14(2) can be applied when the public body has previously provided the same requestor with the information in relation to an earlier Freedom of Information Request.
As a result, I have assessed this part of the request as being substantially similar to a previous response relating to reference 0016-25/26. - None – the Resolution Team are an independent service within the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner that seek to service recover complaints. If complaints cannot be service recovered, then they are referred to Cleveland Police for further investigation.
As a reminder, Police and Crime Commissioners cannot intervene in operational matters, such as deciding what crimes to investigate and how. The Chief Constable of a force retains operational independence and is expected to make operational decisions free from political interference. - None