FOI 12517 and 12518

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NOs:  West Mercia Police 12517 and Warwickshire Police 12518

 

I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 4 September 2019.  Please find below the response to your request:

 

I wish to make a Freedom of Information request with respect to your Constabulary's adherence,  or otherwise,  to the National Security System Policy especially with regard to the Type B Non-compliant (Non-URN) alarms,  Intruder or Hold Up Alarm (HUA) activations. I would ask that the following questions are accurately responded to:

1. a)     What is the command structure of the alarms department,  from the issuing clerk up to a Superintendent,  or high-ranking senior officer,  in charge of the department?
2. b)     Do the constabulary apply a further Risk Assessment policy (such as THRIVE),  or something similar to those Type B activations?
3. c)     If they apply such a further risk assessment to the Type B reports,  do the constabulary still attend NO Type B’s,  based on such alarm activations already having been risk assessed in the Security Systems policy itself as unsuitable for attendance?
4. d)     If c) is the case I ask that only the last 10 calls from non-compliant ARCs are checked by an individual to evidentially confirm that none of these calls were so attended.
5. e)     However,  if such calls at c) cause the constabulary to attend any Type B alarms(based purely on a call from a Non-compliant Alarm Receiving Centre),  I request statistics from 1st April 2019 to 30th June 2019,  or the last 50 calls (time period to be also stated) from Non-Compliant centres,  whichever is the smaller figure. I ask that they be checked to:

• Inform me of the total number of calls received from those Non-Compliant ARCs in the time period used.(Explanation – the policy states: ‘To obtain police attendance,  Type B systems will require evidence from a person at the scene that a criminal offence is in progress which indicates that a police response is required.’ They should not be attended purely from a call from a Non-Compliant Alarm Receiving Centre,  who would be reporting such an activation.)
• How many of those calls were responded to by the constabulary? (in order to establish a % figure of those Type B’s attended).

 

Reply – West Mercia Police

 

Your request for information has been considered in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”), and I am not obliged to provide the information requested.

 

S.12(1) of the Act states that a public authority is not obliged to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying with the request would exceed the “appropriate limit”.  For police forces in England and Wales, the "appropriate limit" is £450 or 18 hours of work as set by the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004.

 

The information you have requested is not available in a readily retrievable format.  Alarm activations for Type B alarms are not automatically or necessarily logged on the West Mercia Police command and control system as being alarm activations and some calls from alarm companies are not logged at all.  In order to ascertain whether the information you have requested is held would involve looking at all calls received during the time period.  West Mercia Police receives hundreds of calls a day and it would take dozens, if not hundreds, of hours to ascertain what information is held as each record would have to be checked individually.

 

In accordance with s.17(5) of the Act, this acts as a Refusal Notice.

 

Under s.16 of the Act I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to your request.  Unfortunately, due to the volume of records that would need to be reviewed I am unable to identify information that could be supplied within the fees limit.  In the spirit of the Act, however, answers to your other questions have been ascertained as follows:

 

 

1. What is the command structure of the alarms department,  from the issuing clerk up to a Superintendent,  or high-ranking senior officer,  in charge of the department?

 

• Alarms Administrator
• Manager - Vehicle Recovery, Abnormal Loads & Alarms
• Service Development Manager
• Senior Public Contact Manager
• Superintendent

 

1. b)     Do the constabulary apply a further Risk Assessment policy (such as THRIVE),  or something similar to those Type B activations?

 

Yes.  THRIVE Type B Applications

 

1. c)     If they apply such a further risk assessment to the Type B reports,  do the constabulary still attend NO Type B’s,  based on such alarm activations already having been risk assessed in the Security Systems policy itself as unsuitable for attendance?

 

The Security Systems Policy itself does not deem Type B Activations as Unsuitable for attendance, the policy advises that Type A systems with a URN preclude the necessity for 'THRIVE'.  Only Type B Alarms should be 'THRIVED' and Policed in accordance with the result.

 

1. d)     If c) is the case I ask that only the last 10 calls from non-compliant ARCs are checked by an individual to evidentially confirm that none of these calls were so attended.

 

Each request from a non-compliant alarm receiving centre for an activation on a Type B system will be recorded, assessed and policed as per  'THRIVE'.

 

1. e)     However,  if such calls at c) cause the constabulary to attend any Type B alarms(based purely on a call from a Non-compliant Alarm Receiving Centre),  I request statistics from 1st April 2019 to 30th June 2019,  or the last 50 calls (time period to be also stated) from Non-Compliant centres,  whichever is the smaller figure. I ask that they be checked to:

• Inform me of the total number of calls received from those Non-Compliant ARCs in the time period used.(Explanation – the policy states: ‘To obtain police attendance,  Type B systems will require evidence from a person at the scene that a criminal offence is in progress which indicates that a police response is required.’ They should not be attended purely from a call from a Non-Compliant Alarm Receiving Centre,  who would be reporting such an activation.)
• How many of those calls were responded to by the constabulary? (in order to establish a % figure of those Type B’s attended).

 

Unable to ascertain (as per above Refusal Notice).

 

 

Reply – Warwickshire Police

 

1. What is the command structure of the alarms department,  from the issuing clerk up to a Superintendent,  or high-ranking senior officer,  in charge of the department?

 

• Alarms Administrator
• Manager - Vehicle Recovery, Abnormal Loads & Alarms
• Service Development Manager
• Senior Public Contact Manager
• Superintendent

 

1. b)     Do the constabulary apply a further Risk Assessment policy (such as THRIVE),  or something similar to those Type B activations?

 

Yes.  THRIVE Type B Applications

 

1. c)     If they apply such a further risk assessment to the Type B reports,  do the constabulary still attend NO Type B’s,  based on such alarm activations already having been risk assessed in the Security Systems policy itself as unsuitable for attendance?

 

The Security Systems Policy itself does not deem Type B Activations as Unsuitable for attendance, the policy advises that Type A systems with a URN preclude the necessity for 'THRIVE'.  Only Type B Alarms should be 'THRIVED' and Policed in accordance with the result.

 

1. d)     If c) is the case I ask that only the last 10 calls from non-compliant ARCs are checked by an individual to evidentially confirm that none of these calls were so attended.

 

Each request from a non-compliant alarm receiving centre for an activation on a Type B system will be recorded, assessed and policed as per  'THRIVE'.

 

1. e)     However,  if such calls at c) cause the constabulary to attend any Type B alarms(based purely on a call from a Non-compliant Alarm Receiving Centre),  I request statistics from 1st April 2019 to 30th June 2019,  or the last 50 calls (time period to be also stated) from Non-Compliant centres,  whichever is the smaller figure. I ask that they be checked to:

• Inform me of the total number of calls received from those Non-Compliant ARCs in the time period used.(Explanation – the policy states: ‘To obtain police attendance,  Type B systems will require evidence from a person at the scene that a criminal offence is in progress which indicates that a police response is required.’ They should not be attended purely from a call from a Non-Compliant Alarm Receiving Centre,  who would be reporting such an activation.)
• How many of those calls were responded to by the constabulary? (in order to establish a % figure of those Type B’s attended).

 

• Calls received – 126
• Calls attended - 40