Eastern Police District | |
 Eastern Police District Fight Crime Committee members flash their ID cards allowing them access to observe members of the public reporting crimes |
SIXTEEN Eastern District Fight Crime Committee (EDFCC) members have been invited to take an active part in the Customer Service Improvement Project of Eastern Police District by contributing comments and suggestions through observation sessions on report room processes. As part of the Force Consultancy Support Project, North Point Station (Eastern Police District) has been chosen as a "pilot" station to improve service to the public. The aim of the project is to create a benchmark for overall service quality standards and to help usher the Force into 21st Century. |
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"While the project is based on developing initiatives from the Consultants and Force members, input from local community leaders, DFCC members, residents, school teachers, etc. is also considered an integral part of the project. To this end, members of EDFCC have been invited by me to take an active part in the project," said District Commander Yeung Ying-wai of Eastern Police District. DC Yeung said the project's aim is to simplify the procedures for citizens who come to report crimes, as well as improving report room environments so as to make reportees as comfortable as possible. "Most people who make a report to police are seeking help and under stress," he said. "Our aim therefore is to pay more attention to the feelings of our customers, helping them to feel more comfortable and at ease. This can be done by improvements to the design, lighting and furniture of the station, as well as by a review of the process for reporting a crime." The Observers Scheme will extend for six months, during which time appointed EDFCC members are free to observe citizens making reports at report rooms in EDIST. They may participate in both scheduled and impromptu observations. For scheduled observations, a roster will be drawn up for the attendance of not more than three observers at a time, who must be accompanied by staff of the Police Community Relations Officer EDIST. Members may sit in on these interviews and follow the progress of the report. For impromptu observations, members are free to visit any report room in Eastern District unaccompanied by staff of the PCRO office. In both cases their presence is subject to the approval of members of the public who are giving the reports. An observer is expected to be briefed by the Duty Officer as to the gist of the report and the general approach adopted by police in providing their service. Meanwhile, they are not to interfere with an investigation in progress. However, an observer may ask questions as to the reportee's general satisfaction with police service and procedures as long as the reportee does not object and it does not cause undue delay of the case. Information obtained through such observations is privileged and must not be divulged to any one. It is strictly for use in discussion at the DFCC meetings and solely for the purpose of the project. Members will be asked to make comments and suggest improvements to the Eastern District Commander on a monthly basis via the secretary of the District Fight Crime Committee. Eastern District Fight Crime Committee chairman Chan Bing-woon said his members are happy to co-operate in the project and see their contribution as a way to enhance their communication with police and to ultimately help reduce the crime rate. | |
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THE disclosure in November that the Force was
considering changing its uniform led local papers to suggest some designs of their own, although the proposed
Bermuda shorts and tight lycra trousers might not be to everyone's taste.
The Project Team for the Comprehensive Review of Force Working Dress has now been formed. It will be co-ordinated by Support Wing and will report to the Uniform and Accoutrements Committee. The project has a five-year time scale, but may well be shortened with your help. |
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Explains Charles Mitchell, Superintendent Field: "Uniform is part of our everyday life and every body has an opinion on it - and we want to hear those opinions! It is unlikely that we can please everybody, but we don't want at the end of the project, to hear people saying that they were not consulted." According to SP Mitchell, each Region, Major Formation (UB) and Staff Association has appointed a member to represent them on the Project Team. These officers will be approaching as many people as possible to gather their views in the next month or so. The sort of questions they will be asking are: What do you like about our present uniform? What do you dislike about it? What would you like to see in a new uniform? What do you not wish to see? Should we retain differences in uniform between JPOs and officers - or should we be uniform? Do we wish to retain separate summer and winter uniforms, or have a more co-ordinated approach? The parameters of the study are non-specialist land units working dress and associated accoutrements, male and female, summer and winter - including Traffic Wardens. "There is no need at this point to get too caught up with details - what we need is a broad outline of what sort of things the Force wants to see in its uniform," said SP Mitchell. "We will then get down to the preliminary design stage then ask for opinions on these. "If officers have an opinion they should contact their 'representative' and let them know. The Project Team will meet again at the end of February so try to make your views known before then."
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