05 Mar 2020
In March 2020, for the second year running, Dyfed-Powys Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office has been awarded the Transparency Quality Mark, a sign of high quality standards in relation to transparency of governance structures and information publishing.
CoPaCC, the police governance experts first reviewed Police and Crime Commissioners' (PCC) ability to meet their statutory transparency responsibilities one year after the first PCC elections. This year28 OPCC's have been awarded the Transparency Quality mark.
OPCCs were assessed during November and December 2019 with a CoPaCC researcher acting as a ‘mystery shopper’, reviewing websites to determine how Commissioners fulfil their statutory responsibilities for transparency as outlined in the Elected Local Policing Bodies (Specified Information) Order 2011. .
CoPaCC have announced that despite a higher pass threshold and the new ‘ease of use’ criteria, ie, how easy is it for a member of the public to find the information; , 28 of the 32 OPCCs assessed have reached the required standard for the 2020 ‘Open & Transparent’ Quality Mark including Dyfed-Powys Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office.
Dafydd Llywelyn, Police and Crime Commissioner said, “You can be confident that I meet my publishing responsibilities, as my office was also awarded the CoPaCC National Quality Mark for Transparency during 2018/19. The compliance function within my office ensures that any changes and updates to legislation are acted upon and members of the public have an avenue to request information that we hold. As one of 28 OPCCs to be presented with the award, my office has proven that they providetimely, consistent and clear information which demonstrates their commitment to transparency.
Paul Grady, Head of Police for Grant Thornton, assurance providers and sponsors of the CoPaCC Transparency Quality Mark, said “For my part, these OPCCs have all demonstrated that they are transparent in what they do, meeting relevant legal requirements. They present key information in an accessible format on their websites. I congratulate them all on their award winning work, and I look forward to what I trust will be continued excellent work by each and every one of them in this area.
