South Australia Police will implement several changes contained in an independent review of the District Policing Model.
Earlier this year, BDO was appointed to conduct this independent review by the Commissioner of Police, Grant Stevens with the goal to ensure SAPOL's policing approach remains fit for purpose in a rapidly changing environment.
"BDO engaged with more than 900 members of SAPOL across all four Districts, specialist and support areas, from frontline officers to executives and various stakeholders," Commissioner Stevens said.
"The clear feedback shows just how deeply our people care about the organisation, their work and the community they serve.
"The review was designed to be a catalyst for improvement, and will build on the already significant programs of work underway to reduce demand and streamline processes and reporting."
In the immediate term, changes to provide relief to frontline policing include:
- The Mobility Program being accelerated, giving officers mobile phones to complete their work on scene.
- Operational briefing processes to reduce unnecessary reporting.
- Enhanced face-to-face training for Sergeant/Senior Sergeants.
- Policies for CCTV collection being reviewed to reduce the impact on frontline police.
- The ceasing of traffic benchmarks for Districts and Regions with the new introduction of a performance framework focussed on outcomes.
- Plans to create new 24/7 District Duty Inspector positions in every District to support frontline decision making.
"In parallel, we are exploring more significant structural changes to reshape our approach to policing in the metropolitan area," Commissioner Stevens said.
"These will require careful modelling, consultation, and consideration of operational, workforce, and financial impacts."
Other significant and long-term changes include designing a new approach to frontline operations which will change the way response and district policing teams currently work.
"The review found the principles underpinning the District Policing Model (DPM) are sound. Several components are working well and should be enhanced, however demand for police is rising and becoming more complex which is outpacing our current frontline capacity, so we are making changes," Commissioner Stevens said.
SAPOL will also look at ways to provide a specific focus on the CBD entertainment precinct.
All significant changes must be delivered within SAPOL's existing budget.
BDO has also been tasked to review regional policing. The project will engage extensively across the Regions to identify opportunities for change to enhance regional policing outcomes.
"Our focus remains clear: to provide an adaptive policing service that delivers for our people and our communities.
"This is a pivotal moment for SAPOL. I am confident in our people, our purpose, and our pathway forward."
