Service design signals: PSPO area.
Uncovering the depths
Welcome to this new micro-blog series called Service Design Signals. I’m calling it signals because these are little opportunities to understand something about how services work, by thinking though some of the things in our every day life that seem odd, awkward or put additional burden on us. These things, that people in the industry sometimes call ‘friction’ or ‘pain points’, can help us dig deeper to identify cracks, creaks or idiosyncrasies with how the service has been designed… and maybe think about solutions too.
Context:
My family recently parked in a multi-story car park that we have been to many times before. Except this time it looked initially as if it had been covered in stencil graffiti which was weird and meant we looked closer.
On closer inspection it seemed as though these were actually official notices that we were being expected to pay attention to. But they didn’t have any of the visual signals you associate with an important notice — they looked unofficial, were stencilled very sloppily (not with a spray can but probably with paint on a sponge).
None of us knew what PSPO meant, so the use of that acronym was confusing. And as we looked around we realised that almost every surface was covered with these notices. On some longer walls the notice was posted every few feet along the same stretch of wall.
I googled PSPO (because that is the sort of person I am) and, after I’d scrolled through some results for Agile Scrum Product Owner (SPO) I found this guidance from the Local Government Association about Public Spaces Protection Order.
I looked around for more clues:
So I grasped that there must have been people meeting up in the carpark and maybe causing issues in the local area, and now I have two different phone numbers to call if I spot a problem.
I noticed that some other general notices were also now done in this style, including a no smoking sign, and information about the lift.
How does this feel?
Visually the initial feeling is that there is lots of graffiti which is new, but that is quickly followed by confusion as you see different acronyms that you don’t understand (PSPO and ASB). This is confusing and weird and as a general user of the carpark you’re wondering if this is something you need to be aware of to make sure you pay for your parking. The fact that every single surface is covered in these notices feels oppressive, however the regularity of the message on every surface means you quickly stop noticing it, and when coming across more general messages (like the no smoking or lift message) you almost miss them for thinking they’re the same thing again.
That weirdness is a service design signal. So what might be happening?
Break it down…
Lets use the Iceberg model of systems thinking to see if we can break this down.
The iceberg model helps us to think about what’s observable (Events) but also helps us to uncover what’s hidden, that is, what might be causing those events. We don’t have access to all of the information behind this, but we can make some recons that (if we tested with real people) we could refine later.
1.Events. The observable behaviour or action.
The above description shows the observable behaviour.
2. Patterns and trends. Consistent or prolonged action or behaviour.
We don’t have a good sense of what’s been happening here over time, though we can make assumptions about ‘car meets’.
When walking around the town we see other (more official) signage about PSPOs which include a drinking ban in the town centre, this suggests that this is a council concern. A quick google shows that PSPOs have been brought into place in a number of parts of the borough (not just this town centre) over the past year and that the car park is owned by the council. Though there is no information online about a specific PSPO in this car park.
A local news article states that:
“According to a [place name] Borough Council report, which draws from police records, there was a 25 per cent increase in nuisance antisocial behaviour in the town centre in the year to August 2023, against the 12 months before that.”
Messaging about antisocial behaviour is also consistent across the council website, appearing at the bottom of multiple pages.
3. Underlying structures. The structures that reinforce or encourage the patterns.
PSPOs are one of the tools available to councils as part of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, as the LGA explains:
“The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 introduced several new tools and powers for use by councils and their partners to address anti-social behaviour (ASB) in their local areas. These tools, which replaced and streamlined a number of previous measures, were brought in as part of a Government commitment to put victims at the centre of approaches to tackling ASB, focussing on the impact behaviour can have on both communities and individuals, particularly on the most vulnerable. PSPOs are one of the tools available under the 2014 Act.” Public Spaces Protection Orders Guidance for councils — Local Government Association
There might also be multiple parts of the Local Authority organisation who have an interest in PSPOs from Housing, Environmental Services, Planning and Development or even Adult Services.
We also know that Local Authorities have been struggling with budgets after a period of austerity, so financial constraints may influence this to some degree.
4. Mental models. The underlying culture or beliefs that fuel the structures.
This is difficult to uncover without speaking to people, but we can make some assumptions (which, if this were a real project, we could test later).
The Local Government Lawyer website offers some pointers:
By s.59 (1–3) of the ASBCPA 2014, local authorities may make a PSPO if satisfied “on reasonable grounds” that two conditions are met.
Firstly, “activities carried on in a public place within the authority’s area have had a detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality, or it is likely that activities will be carried on in a public place within that area and that they will have such an effect”.
Secondly, “the effect, or likely effect, of the activities (a) is, or is likely to be, of a persistent or continuing nature, (b) is, or is likely to be, such as to make the activities unreasonable, and (c ) justifies the restrictions imposed by the notice”.
[…]
In deciding whether to make a PSPO and formulating its contents, local authorities must (a) consult; (b) publicise; and © notify. Local Government Lawyer
Looking at the reporting of PSPOs in Local news also might give some examples, like this article which has the title “Plans to tackle public defecation in [place name]” which
This article also includes a quote from a Local Councillor:
Labour councillor for [place] [name], who is responsible for community in [place], said at a meeting on Tuesday, October 10: “Many residents have raised this particular issue with me and the is probably something of a shared experience among cabinet.
“I am glad we are able to do something reactive and look to put something in place that will go some way to help tackle antisocial behaviour currently being experienced in the town centre.”
So what could we say the mental models here might be? Well, we’re probably looking at the mental models of the Local Authority, which might be something like:
- We already have one PSPO so we can do this again
- This isn’t going to change
- It’s our job to protect the local area
- Residents want this
- We can’t waste money
Why does any of this matter?
We’re looking for signals that help us to interrogate how the services that we come into contact with in our daily lives run. It helps us to understand more about how things fit together and to think about what we would like to improve.
Wait, there’s more
I’ve inadvertently dived deeper into PSPOs than I thought I might during the course of this work, but all of this research was done in a few hours from my laptop, showing just how much you can uncover with relatively little effort. It’s just the surface but I’m grateful to have been able to learn more about this subject purely from a chance encounter in a car park.
In this post I’ve deliberately selected perspectives which help us to understand the car park signage, but there are more perspectives than this, for example, one within the same article as linked above:
[Cllr. name] added: “There is lots to be said for the root-level causes of this, and the impact that cutting community schemes and social budgets has on our communities.
“I know it’s something we are mindful of as an administration … but we must always keep in mind the importance and the need for supportive, wrap-around services where there is a genuine need.”
[…]
Council leader [name], Liberal Democrat councillor for [place], admitted he was “quite nervous” about plans for a PSPO.
He told his colleagues in the Liberal Democrat and Labour administration: “What it does it potentially put limits on people’s freedoms — freedom of expression and freedom to act.
“However, there is also the aspect that people need to feel safe and secure in the places they call home and actually, there is a trade-off between those two things.”
The human rights organisation Liberty are also calling for PSPOs to be scrapped while in other areas local residents interest groups are protesting the use of PSPOs.
What do you think?
If you like this blog, or if you have any feedback, please drop me a comment. Similarly if you’ve spotted any other ‘Signals’ please let me know, and maybe we can work them through together. Thanks!
