Thu, 2007-08-16

The headline in today’s Mid-Ocean News, “Staff are demoralised by Police changes say insiders,” is indeed a skewed account of what has otherwise been a positive change made by the Bermuda Police Service (BPS) to improve its service to the local community. As the officer responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Service Realignment I was disappointed that the criticisms in the article had not reached me by one of our formal feedback processes. It is important, therefore, for the BPS to provide the following response for the public’s benefit.

The Realignment of the BPS took effect on 16th June 2007 and is designed to shape the organisation so that it best delivers community-focused partnership policing. We are aiming to concentrate the use of our limited resources on reducing crime and improving the quality of life in Bermuda. In short, we are trying to do more with less in a way that does not compromise community safety, operational effectiveness or public confidence. We believe that we have found a formula that will work, in the form of the Service Realignment and the new uniform shift pattern.

The significant changes arising from the Realignment include the formation of the Community Policing Division (CPD) with a complement of 330 staff, or 70% of total BPS resources. CPD is headed by a Superintendent with a Chief Inspector (Area Commander) in each of the three police stations. A fourth Chief Inspector is in charge of support Units, including PSU, Marine, Roads Policing and Crime Prevention. Community Action Teams (CAT) have been formed at each police station. CAT teams have responsibility for tackling long-term community issues including the street level drugs trade. By transferring the role of the former Narcotics Street Enforcement Team to CAT, the current Narcotics Unit, working with its Customs partners, is able to focus more sharply on significant drug importation, trafficking and the confiscation of illegal assets.

The Realignment coincided with the implementation of a new shift system for our uniformed officers. The system enables us to overlap two duty Watches for several hours a day. Area Commanders can now vary their officers’ start and finish times to coincide with public events or crime trends that warrant an increased police presence.

The Realignment is only two months old and our CAT teams are already consulting with the community and prioritising their work in line with residents’ concerns. Each CAT team has its own small success story – including the Eastern CAT team’s effort at Top Square in conjunction with the Corporation of St. George’s; the Western CAT team’s effort with the Sandy’s Parish Council at White Hill; and the Central CAT team’s effort against anti-social behaviour in City parking lots in conjunction with the Corporation of Hamilton. Our Watch officers are making use of the shift overlap to increase our uniformed presence on the streets at busy times, including Friday and Saturday nights when the nighttime economy attracts activity around bars and clubs.

It is still early days, and the Commissioner and his command team recognise that there is more work to be done. Much of the feedback to date from our officers centres around operational logistical issues, including the need for more vehicles. The perennial staff shortage in the BPS is also an issue. Like most agencies, we are constantly balancing competing demands and priorities against a limited number of officers to deploy.

Every change process needs time before the full advantages can be felt. The Bermuda Police Service is committed to the Realignment change process and we will continue to strive towards delivering the highest quality of service to the Bermuda community.

We are always open to constructive criticism, but today’s Mid-Ocean News headline made it important for us to set the record straight. It would be discouraging if the views of only a few were allowed to undermine the hard work being done. The majority of our men and women continue to serve the community every day, without complaint, by delivering professional, competent law enforcement services. The Commissioner and his command team are aware and appreciative of these efforts, and we will continue to work with our staff and our partners to improve and maintain our standard of policing.

Response to Today’s Mid-Ocean Article “Staff Are Demoralised by Police Changes Say Insiders” From BPS Human Resources Manager Mr. Michael Trott

The Department of Human Resources and the Training Centre of the Bermuda Police Service (BPS) in response to the above printed article would like to clarify the circumstances under which a potential Bermudian Police Officer may be terminated as a result of failing the Service’s training standards.

The BPS is committed to attracting, training, and retaining suitably qualified Bermudian applicants against an ever expanding global employment market. However, given the shrinking resource pool, the BPS does not - and should not - deviate from its training standards. Where officers fall below the required standard, the BPS provides additional training support in the form of extra tuition and closer monitoring over a period of months.

Any decision by the Commissioner of Police to release an officer from the BPS is based upon recommendations from his/her Divisional Commander, the Training Centre’s evaluation of the officer and their work performance during the three (3) year probationary period. Such a decision is only taken where the Commissioner is satisfied that the officer has not responded to every opportunity to improve their performance and, consequently, the officer is not likely to develop into an efficient and effective member of the Bermuda Police Service.

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