Operational partnerships - Community resolutions SOP (O32g)

1. Summary of Changes

1.1. This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been reviewed in October 2024 – the content from the July 2024 SOP has been amended to apply to the youth process. This SOP involves clarification of the differences between CR suitability and authorisation levels for youths compared to that of adults.

2. What this Procedure is About

2.1 This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) gives operational direction for when and how Community Resolutions will be authorised, how they will be delivered and how to record them.

2.2 This procedure seeks to enable officers to deal proportionately with low-level crimes in line with the Child Gravity Matrix. Whilst primarily aimed at first time offenders, professional discretion is encouraged, considering the nature of the offence, the offender’s history and the victim’s wishes. This SOP will help guide officers in their decision making.

Compliance with this SOP and any governing policy is mandatory

3. Key Considerations

3.1. When considering the use of a CR officers must be satisfied:

• A crime has occurred and there is sufficient evidence to prove it happened.
• The offender has accepted responsibility or admitted guilt (see 3.2 below).
• The offender consents to the CR process and is capable of understanding the situation and process. The Appropriate Adult role is to ensure understanding of the outcome.
• The offender must be made aware that the CR may be disclosed as part of any future enhanced Disclosure and Baring Service (DBS) check.
• Where there is a victim, the victim’s views on a CR are recorded and considered in the decision making process (their consent is not essential to the final decision).
• The victim must be aware that any conditions imposed on the CR are non-enforceable by police.
• The Child Gravity Matrix has been consulted to inform decision making.
• There is a rationale recorded by the deciding officer for why a CR was appropriate.
• Where required, additional authority from the Youth Justice Team (see 4 below) is recorded for using a CR.
• An Appropriate Adult must be present for the administration of the Community Resolution. If a Youth Justice Service (YJS) worker is present, they must not replace or fulfil the role of the Appropriate Adult. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, the Appropriate Adult must be a parent, guardian or suitable family member.

3.2 Acceptance of Responsibility is not defined. It is a lower standard than a full admission. Officers may consider a CR suitable, even when a defence or mitigation has been raised, so long as the above considerations are met.

3.3 There must be evidence, written or otherwise recorded (i.e. BWV), that the offender:

• Accepts the facts of the case; and
  o Accept their responsibility for them; or
  o Accepts their actions contributed towards them.
  Examples –
  1. An individual accepts that a fight occurred, accepts they were involved in it, but claims they acted in self-defence. It might not be appropriate to consider a CR for an Assault, as they do not accept the fact of the case. However, it may be acceptable to issue a CR for a public order offence to all parties.
  2. An individual accepts they punched the victim but says “He shouldn’t have provoked me”. A CR is appropriate if the other criteria (3.1 above) are made out. This is not a defence or dispute to the evidential facts, just mitigation.

4. Restrictions and authorities (See Annex A):
4.1 A CR must never be issued for:

• Offences that would result in a driving licence endorsement at Court
• Offender subject to Court Bail or Wanted on Warrant
• Offender subject to current court order (Referral Order or Youth Rehabilitation Order)
• Knife/Weapon Crime (any incident involving a knife or weapon)
• Sexual Offences
• Indictable only offences

4.2 Youth Justice Team Supervisor authority is required for:

• Second Community Resolution within 12 months or previous offending history
• Intimate Partner Domestic Abuse (DA)
• Adolescent to Parent Violence or Abuse (APVA)
• Possession of Class A substances
• Victim does not agree to the CR process
• Vulnerable Offender (as defined by PACE)
  Authorisation from the Youth Justice Supervisor must be sought prior to the administration of the Community Resolution, not retrospectively.

4.3 Domestic abuse - the Domestic Abuse policy details more guidance on justice outcomes for domestic abuse cases. Community Resolutions are rarely appropriate in domestic abuse cases.

5. Child Gravity Matrix

5.1 The child gravity matrix should always be referred to when considering the most appropriate outcome and this should be recorded on the investigation log as to how the gravity matrix score has been arrived at.

6. Recording

6.1 CRs must be recorded using the Community Resolution Record on Athena or the Make Time Count Today (MTCT) app where available.

6.2 The following information should be recorded and accessible for review and scrutiny:

• Views of the victim (where available)
• Acceptance of responsibility or admission
• Authority from the Youth Justice Team where required
• Rationale for using CR as a disposal, including Child Gravity Matrix score

6.3 Information may be recorded on the Community Resolution Record, MTCT App; BWV; ePNB; or any other auditable method that can be directed to within the Investigation/CR form.

6.4 The Community Resolution Record or PDF generated by the MTCT App should be scanned and attached to the Athena investigation by the officer, recorded within the ‘actions tab’ on Athena (please refer to Athena guidance) and tasked to IMU to quality assure.

7. Conditions

7.1 CRs should have conditions attached, focused on:

• Making good the harm caused to the victim or the community
• Potential to provide intervention and divert the offender to prevent further crime
• Completion of an educational workbook Youth Diversion, Education & Intervention (sharepoint.com)

These will only be voluntary conditions, cannot be enforced and the outcome cannot be changed (i.e. to Charge) due to non-compliance. Victims must be made aware of this.

7.2 Officers should set realistic, appropriate, proportionate actions and timescales when formulating a CR agreement. Outcomes can be:

• Instant (such as an apology or reparation); or
• Deferred - as agreed by the parties, to be completed at a later date.

7.3 If outcomes are deferred - they should be given a proportionate timescale for the offender to complete, and should not exceed 16 weeks from date of offence.

7.4 Financial conditions cannot be added to a community resolution for a young person. If a parent wishes to pay money to a victim for damage caused, this must be outside of any community resolution agreement.

7.5 Potential actions to consider:

• Reparation (repair of damage to victim’s property or work in the community)
• Parenting Contract (voluntary agreement signed by the offenders/ parent/carer/guardian outlining expected behaviour)
• Acceptable Behaviour Contract (written agreement specifying behaviour)
• Verbal apology to the victim
• Written apology to the victim
• Restorative Justice (referral to Restorative Solutions [email protected])
• Educational Workbook (Youth Diversion, Education & Intervention (sharepoint.com))

7.6 It is important that actions are monitored and those involved are kept informed even when the agreement has not been adhered to. The responsibility for this will remain with the OIC.

8. Equality Impact Assessment

8.1 An Equality Impact Assessment has been carried out and shows the proposals in this policy would have no potential or actual differential impact on grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, transgender, disability, age, religion or belief or sexual orientation.

9. Risk Assessment

9.1 This SOP has been assessed as medium risk.

10. Consultation

Force wide.

11. Monitoring and Review

11.1 Monitoring and review of SOP will be completed by the Strategic Prevention Command (Youth Justice Team). Regular reviews will be completed and as required in response to changes to legislation and/or national guidance.

11.2 This SOP will be reviewed annually with the next review scheduled for October 2025.

12. Other Source Documents

• Youth Justice Team - Home (sharepoint.com)
• National Decision-Making Model (NDM)
• Child Gravity Matrix
• Athena Gateway guidance
• One-page guides

13. Security

13.1. Kent Police have measures in place to protect the security of your data in accordance with our Information Management Policy.

14. Retention and Disposal of Records

14.1 Kent Police will hold data in accordance with our Records Review, Retention and Disposal Policy.