Last year it was a shortage of detectives; this year, a backlog of 999 jobs. They’re the ‘cracks’ in policing according to the annual inspection of police in England and Wales published by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).
Her Majesty’s Inspector Zoë Billingham, who led the inspection, said: “In the face of substantial increasing pressures, dramatic increases in demand and rising numbers of complex crimes like sexual abuse, child abuse and domestic abuse, most forces continue to do a good job in keeping us safe. It is especially commendable that almost all forces are taking effective action in the fight against organised crime. I congratulate officers and staff on the way they have largely kept policing standards high.
“But I have major concerns that policing is under significant stress. On occasions, that stress stretches some forces to such an extent that they risk being unable to keep people safe in some very important areas of policing. About a quarter of forces are all too often overwhelmed by the demand they face, resulting in worrying backlogs of emergency jobs, with officers not attending incidents promptly, including those involving vulnerable people.
“Last year, we warned of a national crisis in the shortage of detectives. Measures to address this are taking time to take effect. There is now a shortfall of 5000 investigators across England and Wales. This means one in five detective desks are empty or are filled with unqualified staff. It is not surprising that this often places a very great strain on existing detectives.
“I am pleased that forces continue to prioritise and improve how they keep vulnerable victims safe. But progress is stubbornly slow. Performance is still below standard in nearly half of all forces. Police officers, police staff and PCSOs rise to significant challenges every single day. It is vital that police leaders take effective action to stop the problems we have found becoming ever more entrenched and widespread.”
Among the apparently unresolved problems: a large number of crimes are written off, denying the victim the service they’re entitled to, says HMICFRS. Many of the problems highlighted in this year’s report are recurring themes, say inspectors.
For the national overview of police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy (PEEL), and for force area reports, visit the inspectorate website.
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At the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), Chair Sara Thornton said: “In the last year policing has been under real strain with rising crime and demand that is more complex, an unprecedented terror threat, and officer numbers at 1985 levels. We talked last September about how the response to terror attacks had led to backlogs of incidents and a slower response to the public – and we see in this report that a major force rated as highly efficient is failing to give a timely enough response to vulnerable victims as a result.
“Flexibility for Police and Crime Commissioners to increase their council tax precept in the last government funding settlement has the potential to enable forces to grow their budgets between 3.6 and 1.6 per cent, which is welcome but still means tough choices about priorities for many forces.
“As always, police chiefs will be looking carefully at their recommendations for improvement, particularly where there are delays in responses to emergency calls and vulnerable people. Nationally we are supporting forces with a plan to increase detective numbers and by improving digital and specialist capabilities that will help forces manage and reduce demand. However, it is vital that forces receive help where they face serious, longstanding challenges for which there are no quick fixes so we fully support HMICFRS’ recommendation to improve peer support to forces.”
And at the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, APCC lead for Performance Matthew Scott called it another positive report for policing. He said: “Mental health represents between 20pc and 40pc of police time, depending where you are in the country. This limits forces’ capacity to deal with crime and antisocial behaviour. PCCs are grateful for the efforts of ministers to engage with us on this issue and invest in solutions, but it is clear that more needs to be done to hold health and social care providers to account for the pressure that their decisions are placing on policing.”
