Bedfordshire’s police and crime commissioner inherited a “somewhat neglected” Criminal Justice Board, meeting told

Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner John Tizard

Bedfordshire’s police and crime commissioner (PCC) inherited a “somewhat neglected” Criminal Justice Board when he took office in May, a meeting heard.

A report to this week’s (Tuesday, December 3) Bedfordshire Police and Crime Panel added that he “immediately” convened an extraordinary meeting where the board was reviewed and the local terms of reference were updated.

It added that the PCC is to develop a 10-year strategy for criminal justice through the Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB)

Panel chair, Paul Downing, said: “[Previous PCCs] weren’t quite as engaged, and I may be wrong, but quite so engaged in the local Criminal Justice Board as they could have been, or perhaps should have been.

“I think most panel members would agree that you are going to start pushing a very heavy ball up a very steep hill over that 10-year period,” he said.

The report said the Police and Crime Plan aims at achieving a whole system change, “which is the only way to address properly [sic] the ways that victims, offenders, prison leavers and communities are being failed by the criminal justice system”.

The PCC, John Tizard, said: “I think anyone who knows anything about the criminal justice system in Bedfordshire, or anywhere else in the country, knows, to say it’s on its knees might be an over statement .

“There’s a lot of work to be done to change and reform.

“All the [member] agencies are committed to making that happen but a lot more depends on what the national government does.

“We need to have a 10-year vision, but what we’ll be doing is very much through the mission board and through the Criminal Justice Board is looking at small steps to make,” he said.

Independent panel member Lee Melville said: “You say that this plan requires government support, if that government support isn’t [forthcoming] does that mean that your objectives and plans are therefore not achievable?”

The PCC Tizard replied: “With a good will from the government I think we can make this happen.

“But it will be dependent on the government both for policy, but also for finance,” he said.