19 November 2025
Minutes of Meeting
Meeting: COT Board
Venue: Conference Room, Skipton Police Station
Date and Time: 19th November 2025 12:30-3:00pm
ITEM 1: ATTENDANCE
CC T Forber – Chair
ACC B Moseley
ACC C Clarke
L Stitt – Assistant Chief Officer
CSO S Moverley-Holmes (Observer)
R Baran – Director of Corporate Development
N Eastwood – Head of Finance and Deputy S151 Officer
T/Ch Insp D Anderson – Staff Officer to CC
K Russell – Senior Corporate Communications Manager
S Gardiner – Governance Support Officer
APOLOGIES
DCC Bisset – Chair
L Branford-White – Chief Finance Officer
ITEM 2: Review of Minutes.
Summary of Discussion:
The minutes of the meetings held on the 29th October were reviewed and approved.
ITEM 3: Review of Action Log.
Summary of Discussion:
Action #656 – COT Event Calendar. The 2026 calendar had been created and distributed. Closed.
ITEM 4: Special Constabulary Update
Summary of Discussion:
CFO S Moverley-Holmes provided the board with the quarterly review of the Special Constabulary.
The Special Constabulary establishment stood at 71, up by three from the previous quarter due to the intake of nine students, offsetting six resignations.
The team faced a deficit compared to the target of 100.
Initial training for the SCLP was postponed in September due to insufficient candidates, but reassurance had been provided to those affected. Additional applicants had since come forward.
Training initiatives included PSU Level 2, Naloxone, and plans for further safeguarding and investigative skills. There is a focus on mandatory training and performance which is being monitored through dashboards.
The Special Constabulary had contributed over 6,000 duty hours from July to September, with 86% of members active, the Specials Road Policing Group had contributed 823 hours. Overall, all duty hours were up by 730 hours from the previous reporting period.
Key activities included response operations, night-time economy support, and participation in national ESP day. The team achieved 39 arrests, responded to incidents of violence, and supported various operations such as up taxi and up tornado.
The Specials Road Policing Group had worked 823 hours
Recognition was given to individuals for long service and exemplary actions, including commendations for life-saving interventions and de-escalation of incidents.
Support for neurodivergent members, such as those with dyslexia, was discussed, with confirmation tailored support is provided.
The CSO outlined ongoing work to align KPIs with the force dashboard, the introduction of laminated 'plan on a page' cards, and collaboration with the Mobile Policing Solutions team.
The Specials Delivery Focus group was refreshed to foster innovation, and efforts are underway to address backlogs in use of force monitoring and to expand attachment opportunities with specialist teams.
The Chief Constable acknowledged the contribution and time given by the Special Constabulary within North Yorkshire Police.
ITEM 5: Monthly Performance Update
Summary of Discussion:
Dan Southern Head of Data & Insight and Chief Insp Alex Langley Operational performance and Continuous Improvement joined the meeting, to present the October Performance report.
It was reported that immediate urban response times were just below the 85% target, with Selby identified as an area needing focus, though improvements were noted in November. Immediate rural response times held at 80%. There were no major areas of concern except for a spike in RTCs in Ryedale and increased ASB in Craven.
Recorded crime showed a long-term decrease, with 3763 offences in October compared to 4066 the previous year.
Specific crime types such as theft of motor vehicles, burglary, and retail crime continued to decline, while hate crime saw an increase, attributed in part to national media coverage.
Robbery personal and business cases were discussed, additional detail around the data was provided around charges and outstanding suspects.
A new allocation policy had been introduced, assigning all robberies to a specific team and a problem profile identified crossover between business and personal robbery suspects.
Outcome rates had improved, with October reaching 18.4% and the financial year to date at 17%.
The data team is awaiting national guidance on new metrics.
Safeguarding concerns had been raised regarding Child Sexual Exploitation flagging, and misper investigations continued to decrease.
ITEM 6: Corporate Communications Monthly Update
Summary of Discussion:
Kate Russell Senior Corporate Communications Manager provided the Corporate Communications update for October.
The team had reported 13 appeals on the force website, a reduction from the previous month, and highlighted significant media coverage on hate crime awareness, major incidents, and court cases. Proactive news and media interviews focused on topics such as Super Tornado, romance fraud, and retail crime.
Several high-profile court cases were covered, including lengthy sentences for child abuse, coercive control, arson, and slavery offences. These cases received substantial media attention and were used to reinforce public messaging.
Social media analytics showed increased engagement on Facebook, with plans to expand Instagram activity. Community Messenger user numbers grew, aided by QR codes on uniforms and proposals to use local notice boards and social media graphics to further boost sign-ups.
The fourth edition of the internal newsletter was released, with mandatory requests being the most popular content. It was confirmed that command team updates are among the most read items, and ongoing efforts are being made to improve internal communication channels.
A discussion took place around strategies to increase Community Messenger sign-ups, including using QR codes on vehicles, local notice boards, and social media.
Plans were made to include QR codes on leaflets and the website, with neighbourhood teams involved in distribution.
ITEM 7: People Management
Summary of Discussion:
Leanne Consett Director of People Services joined the meeting.
Secondment Advert Requests
The current request was reviewed.
Inspector Promotions
A discussion took place around the inspector process, the candidates will be notified on the 20th of November. Any promotion will be on the acceptance of a posting and the postings meeting is scheduled for the 1st of December.
ITEM 8: COT Forward Planner
Summary of Discussion:
The forward planner was reviewed and no amendments required.
ITEM 9: Freedom of Information Requests
Summary of Discussion:
The FOI’s were discussed and reviewed.
ITEM 10: Urgent Financial Decisions and Updates.
Summary of Discussion:
Finance Resources – Support Services.
Naomi Eastwood presented a decision paper for additional finance team resources, including new posts and budget adjustments, with NYFRS approving the proposals after discussion of the business case and future efficiency plans.
The paper outlined the request for a systems accountant, an accountant, an AAT post, and a finance support officer, with the latter added to address increased workload from onboarding the fire and combined authority onto the finance system.
The total annual cost to police is £82,486, with fire covering the remainder.
The Chief Constable questioned whether new technology could reduce the need for additional staff. It was explained that the systems accountant would focus on streamlining processes and improving reporting, but current resource constraints prevent these efficiencies from being realised immediately.
The COT discussed the request and approved the resource request, acknowledging the critical need for stable finances and timely reporting. It was noted that while some posts may not be filled in-year, early approval is necessary for effective onboarding and system integration.
DECISION – Finance Resources Support Services Increase Request. Supported.
Fire also agreed the resource uplift and as the COT was taking place after the SSSB this would be noted as a decision at the December SSSB.
Estate Budget Readjustment.
The ACO presented the decision paper reporting a minor budget adjustment, reallocating an underspend from one estates project to cover additional costs at Athena House.
This was approved for good governance and audit trail purposes, with no bottom-line financial impact.
DECSION - Funding realigned from elsewhere in the budget to fund the Athena House costs. This decision will go into the Strategic Oversight Board papers for ratification. Supported.
ITEM 11: Any other Portfolio Updates by Exception
Summary of Discussion:
None raised for discussion.
ITEM 12: Chief Officer Team Commitments
Summary of Discussion:
The Chief Officer Team Commitments were reviewed for the next two weeks.
ITEM 13: Any other Business
Summary of Discussion:
Winter of Action Ministerial Planning.
This item was discussed and further discussion to take place.
DATE, TIME AND LOCATION OF NEXT MEETING.
Date: 26th November 2025 Time: 9:30am
Location: Haigh Conference Room, Police HQ