HMIC praises force for its work with the vulnerable

NORTHUMBRIA Police has been praised by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary following its third PEEL assessment.

The force was rated good across the three areas that came under the microscope; effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy.

Michael Cunningham, HM Inspector of Constabulary, said he was pleased by the force’s overall performance but noted some areas that still require improvement.

Officers’ work in supporting vulnerable people is “excellent”, the report found.

Mr Cunningham said: “The force is consistently good at identifying vulnerable people at the first point of contact, and it works well with partner organisations to provide effective safeguarding support through the use of restrictive orders such as domestic violence prevention notices.

“The force’s initial investigation of crime is good. Most crimes are allocated to officers with the appropriate investigative skills, and they complete investigations to a high standard. I am reassured by the service the force provides to victims in more serious cases, including victims of rape and others who are vulnerable.

“However, I am concerned that there are very long delays before digital evidence is examined, which can hamper the quality of investigations and cause delays in bringing offenders to justice.”

And improvements still need to be made to the supervision of crime recording and inaccuracies in initial crime-recording decisions need to be fixed, the report found.

Mr Cunningham added: “The force needs to improve its workforce planning so that it has the appropriate skills and knowledge to meet all its likely future demands. The force has a comprehensive technology strategy, but I am concerned that it may not have sufficient expertise to implement this effectively.”