Chap 6: Stategic awareness and complaints

Question 1

Strategic Awareness
Our Priorities

Answer 1

It’s important we all understand the priorities and use them to set the tone for how we work every day.

We need to equip ourselves, enable each other, reflect on how we do things, and support each other to be our best.

Question 2

Our Vision

Answer 2

Our Vision is to be the safest country in the world.
Internationally, New Zealand is seen as a safe place to live, work and visit, but we continue to strive to do more.

Our Vision is about ensuring we continue to look ahead and think about what we can do today, and going forward, to bring about a future where everyone in New Zealand can go about their daily life without fear of harm or victimisation.

Question 3

Drivers of demand

Answer 3

• Families – Whanau
• Youth – Rangitahi
• Alcohol
• Roads
• Organised crime and drugs
• Mental health

Question 4

How Te Huringa O Te Tai was developed

Answer 4

The strategy was developed by listening to the voices of the community, staff, Iwi Māori and encourages the enhancement of our organisational values with uara Māori.

Question 5

Benefits of Te Huringa O Te Tai

Answer 5

While having a direct impact for Māori, Te Huringa o Te Tai will produce benefits for all New Zealanders through improved service delivery and reducing crime and victimisation for all. This strategy is about whänau – about all of us.

Question 6

How PHPF support Our Leadership

Answer 6

The Police High Performance Framework provides a mechanism to help deliver this change, using the tools provided as conversation aids and a framework to support our people. It’s also about the mind-set we bring to our role, the example we set, and the way we approach every interaction.

Question 7

Police Values

Answer 7

Everything we do at New Zealand Police is about ensuring people are safe and feel safe. To enable us to deliver on this commitment we are guided by our core values.

These values inform the way we work, operate, and make decisions. Our values reflect what is important to us and the communities we serve.

Professionalism – We take pride in representing Police and making a difference in the communities we serve.

Respect – We treat everyone with dignity, uphold their individual rights and honour their freedoms.

Integrity – We are honest and uphold excellent ethical standards.

Commitment to Maori and the Treaty – We act in good faith of, and respect, the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi – partnership, protection and participation.

Empathy – We seek understanding of and consider the experience and perspective of those we serve.

Question 8

Police Act 2008
Section 8 Principles
This Act is based on the following principles:

Answer 8

• principled, effective, and efficient policing services are a cornerstone of a free and democratic society under the rule of law:
• effective policing relies on a wide measure of public support and confidence:
• policing services are provided under a national framework but also have a local community focus:
• policing services are provided in a manner that respects human rights:
• policing services are provided independently and impartially:
• in providing policing services every Police employee is required to act professionally, ethically, and with integrity.

Question 9

Section 9 Functions of Police

Answer 9

Participating in policing activities outside New Zealand.
keeping the peace
maintaining public safety
law enforcement
crime prevention
comm support and reassurance
national security
emergency management

Question 10

Section 30 Command and Control
In the absence of a supervisor, the supervisor’s authority and responsibility devolves on—

Answer 10

a) the Police employee available who is next in level of position; and
b) in the case of equality, the longest serving Police employee

Question 11

Complaints involving Police
Action on complaints

Answer 11

• receive, and if appropriate, independently investigate complaints regarding Police conduct
• investigate of its own motion, where it is satisfied there are reasonable grounds to carry out an investigation in the public interest, any notifiable incident
• oversee or review Police investigations of complaints or notifiable incidents
• take such action in respect of complaints, incidents and other matters as is contemplated by the Act.

Whilst Police will in almost all cases lead an investigation, the Authority may choose to conduct its own investigation or investigate in parallel with Police.

The Authority may require any person who is able to give information relating to any matter that it is investigating to provide all information and assistance needed for the Authority to carry out its functions.

Question 12

Initial Action on Receiving a Police Complaint

Answer 12

If the employee subject to a complaint is the only person available at a Police station.

You must record the complainant’s details and promptly submit a brief report as to the circumstances to your District Professional Conduct manager, District Commander or National Manager who will arrange for an independent employee to take the complaint.

Question 13

If a complaint is made on behalf of another person.

Answer 13

You should see the actual complainant in the first instance to confirm the allegations and their wish for an investigation. In a case where a solicitor makes a complaint on behalf of a client, you should make any arrangements for the client’s interview through the solicitor.

Question 14

Notifying serious complaints against a Police employee

Answer 14

It is important that the Commissioner is notified immediately where any Police employee is the subject of a serious complaint.

Question 15

Some examples of serious complaints or issues are:

Answer 15

• Complaints against Police employees likely to generate significant media coverage
• Complaints that would otherwise be considered not serious but involve Police employees who hold the position of inspector or above, or non-Constabulary equivalent level senior managers
• Complaints that involve executive Police employees
• Complaints against Police employees regarding any incident of a sexual nature.

Question 16

Independent Police Conduct Authority Act 1988

Section 15 – Duty of Commissioner
and
how long has he got

Answer 16

1) The Commissioner shall notify the Authority… of every complaint received by the Police, other than a complaint notified to the Commissioner by the Authority.

2) Notification must be given as soon as practicable, but no later than 5 working days after receipt of the complaint.

Question 17

What is a conflict of interest

Answer 17

A conflict of interest means a conflict between a public duty and private and/or personal interests. Personal interests can be financial or relate to family, friends, or associates. Conflicts of interest may be actual, potential, or perceived.

Question 18

How to manage conflicts of interest

Answer 18

First, we must be able to recognise actual as well as potential conflicts of interest. Once recognised, employees must manage these appropriately.

As a supervisor, you need to be having regular conversations with your team so that they can identify and manage conflicts of interest.

You must work with employees who declare conflicts of interest to assess the risks, and to identify appropriate strategies to manage those risks.

Question 19

Management of internal investigation

who does it rest with

Answer 19

Unless determined otherwise by the Commissioner, the overall responsibility for managing investigations into notifiable incidents or complaints against Police employees’ rests with the District Commander or National Manager of the Service Centre where the employee is normally employed.

When an independent investigator is to be deployed, the primary responsibility for managing the investigation including reporting structures resides with the District Commander or National Manager of the employee under investigation. The Director: Police Professional Conduct will provide technical advice and guidelines to ensure a consistent and safe approach.

Question 20

Internal Investigation standards

Answer 20

A good practice standard must be applied to all investigations into Police employees and must be conducted in compliance with the Police Manual.

Employment investigations arising from complaints or notifiable incidents must be conducted by a separate investigator and comply with the principles of good practice outlined in the Code of Conduct and Disciplinary policy.

Question 21

Potential conflict of interest

What is this

Answer 21

A situation where other interests have the potential to interfere with a Police employee’s official duties in the future, or where their official duties could affect their other interests in future.

Question 22

How to participate in managing the conflict In an investigation context

Answer 22

Police employees should discuss the conflict of interest and how it could be managed with a supervisor and cooperate with the management plan.

Question 23

Supervisor and manager responsibilities with conflicts

Answer 23

Foster an open environment

Supervisors or managers should foster an environment where employees feel free to discuss issues such as conflicts of interest. When a conflict of interest is identified, they should discuss the risks associated with the conflict with the individual employee.

Question 24

Determine the potential impact of the identified conflict

Who to speak with if unsure on potential impact of a conflict

Answer 24

Supervisors should seek advice from their own supervisor if they are unsure of the potential impact of the identified conflict.

Question 25

Strategies to manage risk

Answer 25

Together with the involved employee, supervisors should assess the risks involved with the conflict and consider strategies to manage it. Conflicts of interest can be managed in a range of ways, depending on the circumstances

Question 26

Police Professional Distance Guidelines
Take responsibility for maintaining professional boundaries

What to do

Answer 26

• Document all contact in NIA.
• Involve a support person
• If the person make contact outside working hours
• Keep colleagues/supervisors informed
• Consider the cultural values
• Raise concerns with a colleague
• If in doubt, ask yourself whose needs are being met
• Develop and follow a plan of contact

Question 27

Supervisor and manager responsibilities
Take Action: In cooperation with the employee: HOW

Answer 27

• document the conflict and how it was managed
• support staff when issues arise – ensure there are channels in place for people to raise concerns about:
  − how their declared conflict(s) of interest are being managed, or
  − breaches of the conflicts of interest policy
• monitor the conflict of interest, if required, for any changes in circumstance
• consider strategies to avoid future conflicts.