The Community Safety Partnership meeting scheduled for 1 April 2026 was set to discuss a new vision for the borough, It Starts Here: Partnerships for Change, alongside updates on key areas such as the HMIP inspection of the Youth Justice Service and proposals for a new website and learning management system. The meeting also planned to cover progress on combating drug and alcohol-related harm, the timeline for a Serious Violence Needs Assessment, and updates from various sub-groups.

It Starts Here: Partnerships for Change

A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to discussing It Starts Here: Partnerships for Change, a new place-based plan intended to replace the previous Borough Manifesto. This initiative outlines ten key partnership missions, including improving school readiness and child obesity, tackling poverty, enhancing employment opportunities, promoting independent living, ensuring decent homes, preventing and managing long-term health conditions, addressing domestic abuse, fostering community safety, creating cleaner neighbourhoods, and celebrating culture and heritage. The report pack indicated that the Community Safety Partnership was recommended to endorse this new vision, confirming collective ownership and formal recognition of its missions. The plan aims to reflect current local priorities and adopt contemporary partnership approaches, with a focus on early intervention and prevention. This strategy aligns with national and regional policies, such as the NHS 10 Year Health Plan for England and the New Met for London initiative, which also emphasise neighbourhood working and community collaboration.

HMIP Inspection Update and Action Plan

The meeting was scheduled to receive an update on the recent HMIP (Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation) inspection of the Youth Justice Service. The inspection, which took place in November 2025, focused on practice with children and families, assessing performance in areas such as assessment, planning, delivery, and work with victims. The report indicated an overall judgement of Good for the Youth Justice Service, with specific ratings of Outstanding in planning and delivery, and Good in keeping children and communities safe. However, the work with victims was rated as Requires Improvement. The report detailed specific areas for improvement, including recording practices, the need for more restorative justice, and strengthening the focus on adult victims. Recommendations were made for both the Youth Justice Service and the police to enhance victim support and data collection. An improvement plan addressing these recommendations was to be presented.

New Website and Learning Management System Proposals

The partnership was to consider proposals for a new website and a Learning Management System (LMS). A review of the current Barking and Dagenham Safeguarding Partnership (BDSCP) webpages highlighted significant inadequacies, prompting the exploration of a new, independent website. This new site is intended to serve as a central hub for resources, training, and communication for the BDSCP, Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB), Community Safety Partnership (CSP), and Families First Partnership Programme. The proposal recommended appointing Blaze Concepts as the preferred supplier for the website, with costs to be shared across the partner organisations. Additionally, a new LMS was proposed to improve access to training for practitioners, with Phew! identified as the preferred supplier. The report outlined the costs associated with both the website and the LMS, with the partnership being asked to approve the appointment of the suppliers and the financing of the CSP's portion of the costs.

Combating Drugs Partnership (CDP) Subgroup Update

An update was scheduled on the Combating Drugs Partnership (CDP), which provides strategic direction for initiatives related to adult and young people's drug and alcohol use. The report indicated that the operational and strategic groups were being merged into a single CDP meeting to improve efficiency and align with other London boroughs. A workshop had taken place to discuss the combined meeting format, stakeholder involvement, and priorities for the next three years. Key priorities highlighted included reducing risk, working with families, addressing stigma, and considering the impact of NHS structural changes. The report also detailed the BHR Synthetic Opioid Preparedness Exercise, a tabletop exercise conducted to test and strengthen preparedness for incidents involving synthetic opioids. Furthermore, the update covered the ongoing process of addressing Drug and Alcohol Related Deaths (DARDs) and the confirmed three-year funding allocation for drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services.

Serious Violence Duty Workshop and SVNA Timeline

The meeting was also set to discuss the Serious Violence Duty (SVD), which places requirements on local areas to analyse the causes of serious violence, produce a Strategic Needs Assessment (SVA), and develop a strategy to prevent and reduce it. The report outlined the timeline for completing the 2026 Serious Violence Needs Assessment (SVNA), detailing the various partners involved in contributing to the evidence-based analysis. This included local authorities, integrated care boards, the Metropolitan Police, and voluntary sector organisations. The SVNA process involves analysing themes such as place and population, risk and protective factors, and violence profiles related to young people, domestic abuse, and sexual violence.

Other Scheduled Discussions

The agenda also included a report on the CBO Panel, detailing the increasing use of Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs) in the Dagenham Heathway area and requesting ongoing support from the CSP and its partners to identify suitable individuals for CBO applications. Updates were also expected from the Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB) and the Safeguarding Children's Partnership (SCP), covering items such as the recruitment of a new SAB Independent Chair, the refresh of the Carers' Charter, an update on the Met Police's Right Care Right Person initiative, and findings from CQC social care inspections. The partnership's Forward Plan was also to be reviewed, outlining future meeting dates and scheduled topics.