North Wales Police ‘outstanding’ at crime recording, but improvement needed in other areas

The report also acknowledged that the force is working hard to improve its culture, although there are number of areas that require improvement

Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman said: “It is reassuring that our crime recording was graded ‘outstanding’, an achievement held by only a few other forces. Our communities can be confident that we are dealing with crime and working to prevent it.

“One of my first actions as chief constable was to commission a cultural audit. This resulted in a significant amount of work across the organisation, the fact that our work in this area was recognised in the report is encouraging.”

In terms of leadership, the report acknowledged that governance has improved since the last inspection, along with good financial management.

The report records strengths in several areas and recognises some innovative examples of good practice, but there are also areas for improvement.

One of these was that the force needs to make sure it answers emergency calls quickly enough.

Ms Blakeman said: “We recognise that each of these calls has a person behind it and that the speed with which we answer their calls needs to be improved. This is a challenge many forces face and we are committed to improving our service to the public.

“Our innovative work in the control room to employ Policing Degree students during holidays was highlighted and felt to be making a difference to the communities of North Wales whilst also assisting with their university studies.

“We are also in the process of investing significant resources into improving our IT infrastructure which is part of our mid-term financial planning.

“We will also continue to invest in developing our workforce, which was recognised as ‘good’ by the HMICFRS. These two areas will provide a solid platform to approach the challenges we face for the future.”

Another area for improvement was protecting vulnerable people.

The chief constable added: “Safeguarding vulnerable people is a priority for us and I am pleased that the report recognises the fact that we have invested in a full-time role dedicated to improving our response to stalking and that a number of other measures have been put in place to improve our response in this area.

“The number of Domestic Violence Protection Orders we have applied for have also increased, compared to previous years.

“We recognise that there is more to do and we will continue to invest in this area of work. We have already made significant changes and are working to develop new reporting tools, both of which were also acknowledged in the report as putting us “in an ideal position to take action to improve this area”.

She said the report also acknowledged that on the vast majority of occasions the force attend incidents and investigate crimes in a timely manner.

“The report along with other sources of scrutiny allows us to confirm that we are investing our time and resources into the right areas to make improvements,” Ms Blakeman said.

“There are also areas where we can seek to make improvements with activity already ongoing in many aspects identified prior to the inspection.”

HM Inspector of Constabulary Michelle Skeer said: “I am satisfied with some aspects of the performance of North Wales Police in keeping people safe, reducing crime and providing victims with an effective service, but there are areas in which the force needs to improve.

The force is outstanding at recording crime. But it needs to improve its service to the public in some key areas, such as investigating crimes and protecting vulnerable people.

“The force needs to make sure its investigations are effective and consistently supervised. It needs to improve outcomes for victims of crime and make sure they are receiving the level of service they are entitled to. The force also needs to reduce the delays in its digital forensics department as this is affecting the timeliness of investigations.

Overall, we found the force wasn’t considering the breadth and depth of the available data to understand and improve its performance. In particular, the force isn’t doing enough analysis to fully understand its approach to vulnerable people. It needs to improve its approach to domestic abuse, stalking and honour-based violence (DASH) risk assessments and increase officers’ knowledge about recording the voice of the child.

“Officers and staff told us they felt supported by the force. But the force does need to make sure important changes are being communicated effectively. If officers and staff don’t understand changes, or the reasons for them, there is a risk they will fail.

“The senior leadership team has been working closely with us and has already started to plan how it will address the areas for improvements we have identified. I hope the changes that follow result in improvements that help North Wales Police better meet the public’s needs. I will be monitoring its progress closely.”

North Wales police and crime commissioner (PCC) Andy Dunbobbin said: The HMICFRS PEEL Report highlights a number of areas that require improvement, namely investigating crime, protecting vulnerable people, and leadership and force management. It is important that the observations in the report are taken seriously and are acted on by the force.

“I have no doubt that the chief constable is already taking measures to address the issues raised and I look forward to seeing her plans to improve performance in these areas. I know the chief constable, like me, takes the issue of violence against women and girls seriously and we are both committed to combatting it wherever it happens.

“I will be meeting and consulting with the Chief Constable regularly to gauge progress in all highlighted areas on behalf of the public.

“However, it would also be remiss of me, as PCC, to not also recognise the areas where the report praises the force, such as on crime data integrity and on building, supporting, and protecting the workforce.

“These are important areas to get right, both for ensuring public confidence in the force and its data and in making sure we have a positive and happy culture among the officers and staff.

“In the coming weeks I will be publishing my Police and Crime Plan for North Wales, which will have three key priorities. These priorities reflect the wishes of the people of North Wales and consist of a local neighbourhood policing presence; supporting victims, communities and businesses; a fair and effective criminal justice system.

“Ensuring that the force is performing to its full strength across all areas highlighted in the PEEL report will help ensure these priorities are met and that North Wales remains a safe and secure place for all residents and visitors, now and in the future.”