The Greater Manchester Police, Fire and Crime Panel met on Wednesday 16 September 2026. The meeting addressed the financial performance of GMP, GMFRS, and the PCC, reviewed progress on the Police and Crime Plan priorities, and discussed updates on the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations and the Greater Manchester Local Remediation Acceleration Plan. Decisions were made regarding the appointment of new panel members and the endorsement of GMFRS's productivity and efficiency plans.

Appointments to the Panel

The panel noted the co-option of four new local authority members: Councillor Thirza Amina Asanga-Ray from Manchester City Council, Councillor Brian Battle from Stockport Council, Councillor Charlotte Cadden from Bolton Council, and Councillor John Taylor from Rochdale Council. These appointments aim to achieve the panel's political balance objective. The panel was also informed that a fifth co-option would be made at the next meeting.

GMP & GMFRS Finance Update

The panel received an update on the financial positions of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS), Greater Manchester Police (GMP), and the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for the 2026/27 financial year. GMFRS is forecasting a balanced position after transfers to reserves for capital projects. However, GMP is currently forecasting a £9.8 million overspend, while the PCC is projecting a breakeven position after reserve movements.

The GMFRS update highlighted pressures from pay and price inflation, increased capital financing charges, and operational cost pressures, partially offset by additional grant income and underspends on employee-related costs. The capital expenditure forecast for GMFRS shows a significant underspend against budget, primarily due to reprofiling of new build projects and ongoing procurement for operational vehicles.

For GMP, the forecast overspend is largely driven by pay costs, particularly overtime, and pressures in custody and contact centre operations. The report detailed remedial actions being taken to mitigate these pressures, including strengthened overtime management and police staff workforce controls. GMP is also compiling a bid for Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) from the Home Office.

The PCC budget is forecasting a breakeven position, with an increase in Supplies and Services spend due to confirmed government grant awards for the Violence Reduction Unit and Victims Services.

Performance Dashboard - Highlight Report

The panel reviewed a performance update for the quarter ending June 2026, covering all ten priorities of the Police and Crime Plan.

Priority One: Improving Public Trust and Confidence in Policing The proportion of survey respondents who trust GMP has seen a gradual increase, rising from 62.6% in June 2025 to 63.6% in June 2026. Confidence in GMP's performance also saw a slight increase. The report noted improvements in the timeliness and quality of complaint handling, with the average time to resolve complaint files decreasing.

Priority Two: Increasing Police Accessibility, Consistency, Responsiveness and Outcomes GMP continues to perform strongly in answering 999 calls, with an average answer time of 4 seconds. Response times to emergency incidents remain good, with 96.1% attended within the 15-minute target. The solved crime rate has increased by 15% over the last year, with improvements noted in neighbourhood crime, robbery, burglary, vehicle crime, domestic abuse, rape, and other sexual offences. GMP has also launched a refreshed Neighbourhood Policing Strategy to ensure consistency across all districts.

Priority Three: Keeping Children and Young People Safe and Preventing Them From Becoming Involved in Crime Child arrest rates have decreased compared to the previous year. However, out-of-court resolutions and Outcome 22s for under-18s have seen a drop. Referrals to Early Intervention and Prevention Grant (EIPG) funded services have also declined.

Priority Four: Improving Support for Victims of Crime, Including Vulnerable Victims, and Tackling Emerging Crime Types Victim satisfaction with GMP's service has slightly decreased, as has the proportion of victims offered a referral to victim services. Referrals to Catch 22 have also seen a slight decrease. Notably, the number of hate crimes has increased significantly by 13.5%.

Priority Five: Reducing and Preventing Neighbourhood Crime, Retail Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour Neighbourhood crime has continued its downward trend, falling by 6.1%. However, retail crime, including shoplifting, has increased. Police-recorded anti-social behaviour incidents have also risen, likely due to seasonal factors. Operation Vulcan continues to deliver successful deployments, with plans for a transport team and a workstream targeting organised crime groups on high streets. A wider GM ASB framework is being developed.

Priority Six: Improving Road and Transport Safety Road fatalities have decreased, and transport incidents involving injury have fallen significantly. However, crime and anti-social behaviour incident rates on the bus and tram network per million passenger journeys have increased.

Priority Seven: Reducing High Harm and Repeat Offending, Taking Preventative and Diversionary Approach Proven reoffending rates for females have increased slightly, while for males, they have decreased. Out-of-court resolutions for adults have risen, while Outcome 22s have decreased.

Priority Eight: Tackling Drug, Alcohol and Wider Addictions Deaths due to drug misuse and alcohol-related deaths are on the decline. The number of drug offences has also dropped.

Priority Nine: Reducing and Preventing Gender-Based Violence and All Forms of Serious Violence Police-recorded knife crime has fallen, and the homicide rate has decreased. Recorded domestic abuse and stalking crimes have fallen, while rape crimes remained stable. Solved rates for domestic abuse and sexual offences have shown slight improvements.

Priority Ten: Reducing and Tackling Serious and Organised Crime There has been a significant drop in firearms discharges. The amount of drugs seized has increased substantially, although the total value of assets recovered has decreased.

Year 2 Police and Crime Plan Progress Reports

Priority One: Improving Public Trust and Confidence in Policing The GM Police and Crime Survey indicates an improvement in public trust and confidence in GMP. Actions have focused on police standards, ethics, training, recruitment, and complaints handling. The Longsight custody suite has opened, featuring the UK's first airport-style body scanner in a police custody facility. The Independent Custody Visitors (ICVs) received a Gold Award for their monitoring work. Discussions are ongoing regarding the use of Joint Enterprise in criminal investigations.

Priority Two: Increasing Police Accessibility, Consistency, Responsiveness and Outcomes GMP continues to perform well in call answering times and emergency response times. A refreshed Neighbourhood Policing Strategy has been launched to ensure consistency across districts. Solved crime rates have increased across various crime types, and improvements have been made in the quality of case files submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service. The Greater Manchester Local Criminal Justice Board is working to reduce court backlogs. The TravelSafe LiveChat service has seen over 1,300 contacts since its launch.

Priority Five: Reducing and Preventing Neighbourhood Crime, Retail Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour Operation Vulcan continues to be successful in Brinnington, Stockport, with significant arrests and seizures. Plans are underway for an Op Vulcan Transport team and a workstream targeting organised crime groups on high streets. GMP has published its ASB Action Plan, and a wider GM ASB framework is being developed. Retail crime has stabilised and begun to decrease, with a new Whole System Approach to Diversion being developed. Martyn's Law is being implemented, and the GM Gender-Based Violence Strategy includes a focus on the night-time economy.

Grenfell Tower Inquiry Recommendations and Local Remediation Acceleration Action Plan - Update Report

Deputy Chief Fire Officer Carlos Meakin provided an update on GMFRS's progress in implementing the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 recommendations. Significant progress has been made, with delivery becoming embedded practice. More complex areas, such as Fire Control and information management, are being progressed through established governance. Assurance arrangements are in place, and work is ongoing to align with wider Greater Manchester building safety initiatives. The Greater Manchester Remediation Acceleration Plan is also progressing with confirmed government funding.

GM Local Remediation Action Plan - Progress Report

This report detailed the progress of the Greater Manchester Local Remediation Acceleration Plan (GM LRAP). The programme has moved into active delivery, with a dedicated Remediation Delivery Team and a Remediation Lead appointed. Specialist inspectors have been recruited, and a remediation tracker is being developed. A strong emphasis remains on a 'Residents First' approach, with plans for a Greater Manchester-wide residents survey. Key risks include data quality, regulatory complexity, and resident communication.

GMFRS Productivity & Efficiency Plan 2026-27

Sarah Scoales presented the GMFRS Productivity and Efficiency Plan for 2026/27. The plan outlines how the Service will continue to improve productivity, deliver efficiency savings, and ensure value for money. GMFRS is on track to meet its non-pay efficiency target of £0.486m. Productivity improvements are being driven through operational and workforce changes, prevention and protection initiatives, and digital transformation. The Service has also seen significant collaboration benefits through shared estates and services.

GMFRS Annual Delivery Report 2025-26 & Annual Delivery Plan 2026-27

Sarah Scoales also presented the GMFRS Annual Delivery Report for 2025-26 and the Annual Delivery Plan for 2026-27. The Annual Delivery Report highlighted achievements across the four pillars of the Fire Plan: Prevent and Protect, Respond, People and Culture, and Excellence and Value. Key successes included delivering over 31,000 Home Fire Safety Assessments, maintaining a high appliance availability, recruiting 70 apprentice firefighters, and receiving strong outcomes in the latest HMICFRS inspection. The Annual Delivery Plan for 2026-27 outlines priorities including addressing Grenfell Tower recommendations, implementing the Remediation Acceleration Plan, strengthening operational preparedness, and investing in the workforce.

For Information: Deputy Mayor Police and Crime Decisions

The panel received a list of decisions made by the Deputy Mayor for Safer and Stronger Communities between March and August 2026. These decisions covered a range of areas including contract awards for services such as interpreting and translation, wellbeing support, perpetrator interventions, and funding for community safety initiatives across various boroughs. Notable decisions included significant funding allocations for integrated rehabilitation services, domestic abuse perpetrator interventions, and grants to support community safety partnerships.

For Information: Joint Forward Plan

The panel noted the Joint Forward Plan, which outlines the schedule of reports to be presented to the Police, Fire and Crime Panel, Steering Group, and Leads over the municipal year. The plan has been refreshed to include items deferred from previous meetings and has been approved by the Panel chair and Lead Chief Executive.

The meeting was confirmed as held, and decisions were made on the items presented.