Surrey Police
Project: Victim & Witness of Crime
Communications Consultancy
Deliverables: CRM Consulting
Sector: Public Sector
Client: Surrey Police
Developing a Communications Strategy & Implementation
Plan
Challenge
The public perceive the police to be good at human contact, but
poor at systematic contact. This is because there is a lack of
tools and processes in place which automatically ensure that all
victims and witnesses are informed of their case progress. The
database tools available do not lend themselves to systematic
content, as they have been designed for operational rather than
marketing. At present all victims and witnesses are treated equally
from a communications perspective, even though crimes vary in
severity as does the police's deployment of resources.
Consulting Process
The first step was to develop a detailed understanding of the
Police's processes and deployment policies. Then we focused on
understanding victim's needs and circumstances. We had access to
crime statistics, qualitative research and satisfaction studies,
which enabled us to build a segmentation model based upon the
seriousness of the crime and the vulnerability of the victim or
witness. Other factors, such as whether the victim was repeat
victim or lived in a crime hot spot for that crime type were then
added.
Qualitative research was conducted to understand attitudes to
police communications in each customer segment so that a messaging
framework could be developed. This is used to ensure that a
consistent message theme is used for each segment, for example,
reassuring vulnerable victims, managing expectations for first time
victims and regaining confidence with repeat victims.
Having reviewed all existing communications, a revised customer
journey was recommended. A content map was created to signify what
would be included within each communication.
A revised data collection, storage and communications process
was recommended and new Key Performance Indicators were proposed
covering operational, customer satisfaction, customer understanding
and financial measures.
Implementation plan
After final recommendations were presented to the Assistant
Chief Constable and Customer Service Board implementation plans are
being drawn up, starting with a trial on vehicle crime in one
Division. The trial will be used to test the new communications and
customer segmentation using existing systems. As the trial
develops, additional crime types will be added to build learning.
The technical database developments should be ready to enable us to
implement the programme once the trial is complete. In addition, a
number of quick wins have been identified, such as rewriting
existing process letters and using new communications channels.
In addition, a new Customer Service Manager has been appointed
who will ensure that Operational changes will be made to ensure
that the entire customer service received is improved and more
consistent and customer facing staff (e.g. in the contact centre)
are trained accordingly.