A NEW report has highlighted improvements at Staffordshire Police.
The review by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) was published today as part of the Police Efficiency, Effectiveness and Legitimacy (PEEL) programme.
It shows improved ratings in the majority of categories since the last inspection in 2022.
HMICFRS rated the force as ‘good’ in preventing and deterring crime and antisocial behaviour, while rating it as ‘adequate’ in areas such as treating the public fairly, managing offenders and suspects, supporting the workforce and force management.
But it said Staffordshire Police needed to do more in areas such as responding to the public, investigating crime and protecting vulnerable people, with these three areas rated as ‘requires improvement’.
Chief Constable Chris Noble, said:
“Overall, this is a positive report for Staffordshire Police which is reflective of the hard work and commitment of officers and staff to improve the service we provide to Staffordshire communities.
“Since our last full inspection over two years ago, we have been focused on improving all our areas of policing by adopting a back-to-basics approach to ensure we focus on delivering the best possible service to our communities – answering emergency calls faster, arresting more criminals, solving more crimes and further improving our local policing model.
“We have seen particular improvements in the amount of time it takes us to answer 999 calls, how we identify vulnerable callers and how we ensure they get the right support, right away.
“The Inspectorate has commended our ability to effectively address members of the public who make unnecessary repeat 999 calls, which has allowed us to free-up time for the people that need us most.
“HMICFRS has recognised that we need to do more in reducing wait times for our non-emergency 101 service and we already have plans in place to enhance this service through investing in more staff and adopting cutting-edge technology, to ensure it’s a response we are proud of.”
The Chief Constable said changes had also enhanced how officers can tackle local crime.
“Our return to a local policing model – which has now been in place for two years – sees us work more closely with local communities to tackle the local issues that really matter to them.
“HMICFRS has recognised our improved problem-solving approaches and our work with partner agencies to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour at its source. Our engagement with local communities has also significantly improved with increased opportunities for two-way engagement with local officers.
“We’ve also invested heavily in a new public protection unit to provide more officers to tackle the most serious crimes, such as serious violence and sexual assault, which have a lasting impact on vulnerable people.
“We are well underway in addressing the Inspectorate’s challenge to us as to how we respond more consistently and effectively to reports of domestic abuse. We are currently working on a new approach that will significantly reduce the time it takes to respond to domestic abuse-related incidents.
“A number of other improvements are already in train and I am confident we’ll be able to robustly address our weaker performing areas in the same way we did following the 2022 inspection while ensuring the positive changes we’ve already made are maintained.
“This is a positive report for Staffordshire Police but it also outlines areas of focus where we have already well developed plans and intended investments.
“We have not waited for the report to land to start our work and my commitment, and that of my staff, is that we will not rest on our laurels but push on to deliver a service to the Staffordshire public that we can all be proud of.”
Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams said:
“Very few forces have seen improvements across the board in their recent HMICFRS inspections – it’s a credit to Staffordshire Police that they have improved in nearly all grade areas.
“There is now a real basis on which to build an outstanding local police service, which is what the people of Staffordshire want to see. I know this ambition is shared by every police officer, staff member and volunteer, driven by the absolute determination of Chief Constable Chris Noble to return the force to being outstanding once again.
“I will provide the resources to allow Staffordshire Police to do just that, continuing my oversight of performance and governance to ensure this momentum is maintained.”
There were 8 serious areas of policing well below acceptable levels, Staffs Police are less than half way to getting all 8 dealt with “adequately”.. Long way to go to get back to where they were 5+ years ago. Dealing with public is still a major problem as is the 101 wait time debacle. Both of these major default issues are basic.
Nothing has changed? You never see the police in Lichfield apart from in cars, no presence in the city centre. I cannot see why 2 police can not be on constant foot patrol in the city centre on standby to respond to shop lifting etc.