An independent report has found Warwickshire Police lacking in a number of key areas of policing leaving it providing "a poor service to some victims of crime".

The police effectiveness, efficiency, and legitimacy (PEEL) report published today (October 14) found the force required improvement in investigating crime, responding to the public and managing offenders.

The investigation, which looked back at the last 12 months, found serious investigations "were not supervised well enough" and the force "isn't meeting demand".

It also said: "Officers are unable to attend incidents promptly to secure evidence at the scene."

Of the eight areas given judgement by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), none of them scored above adequate.

"I am satisfied with several aspects of the performance of Warwickshire Police in keeping people safe and reducing crime, but there are areas where the force needs to improve," wrote inspector Wendy Williams.

"Warwickshire Police is missing opportunities to safeguard vulnerable people. It needs to improve how it assesses calls from the public, so that vulnerable people and repeat callers are routinely identified."

(Image via gov.uk)

The report added: "Despite the force's efforts to improve how it investigates crime, too many of its serious investigations aren't supervised well enough and aren't effective enough. 

"This is resulting in a poor service to some victims of crime. 

"The force doesn't always pursue evidence-led prosecutions where appropriate. 

"And it doesn't always follow the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime or give enough support to victims by assessing their needs accurately."

While the report did find Warwickshire Police had invested "substantially" in IT support and had reviewed its operating model, the inspection found teams were under-resourced and "without the specialist skills needed to perform their role".

"The force's operating model isn't meeting demand, and it doesn't have enough capacity and capability in its specialised investigation teams to cope with demand," it added.

However, the inspector did say the force worked well with other organisations to stop people offending, including working with young people and building trust in communities.

Commissioner's Comments

Commenting on the report, Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Seccombe said it showed a "complex picture" of "good work" carried out during a "time of rising demand" and "rapid change".

"These inspection findings do not come as a surprise and reflect the analysis my own office undertakes, as well as some of the concerns that the public raise with me," he said.

"I have held the Chief Constable to account on these issues and so they are already recognised by the senior leadership of Warwickshire Police. 

"As a result, I can provide reassurance that the force has detailed programmes both planned and already under way to improve its overall performance.

"These plans have been described as a cause for optimism by the inspectors but clearly it will be important to understand how effective these changes are. 

Commissioner Philip Seccombe said he would be investing in more officers on the street (image via SWNS)

"I will be going through the inspection report carefully with the force in the weeks and months to come to make sure that the improvements required are being delivered."

Commissioner Seccombe also said he would increase the recruitment of new officers and made other investments to support front line policing.

Chief Constable Debbie Tedds added: "We welcome the independent scrutiny by His Majesty's Inspectorate and we are pleased that HMICFRS are optimistic about our direction of travel.

"The recommendations for improvement are very helpful, and they are areas we are already committed to addressing.

"Organisational changes will ensure by Spring 2023 that we have the right people in the right place with the right skills. We're committed to maximising the ongoing investments we have and need to continue to make in information technology (IT) to ensure we use our innovative new technological capacity and capability to serve the public as effectively and efficiently as we can.

"New investigation teams will mean we can improve investigation of lower level but high-volume crimes that negatively impact people's lives. We should also be in a positive position to investigate specialised incidents - improving our services to victims without impacting our capacity for community engagement and resolution of community issues.

"Investment in protective services, prevention resources and provision for domestic abuse, rape, serious sexual offences, child exploitation and abuse, trafficking and exploitation will enable us to more effectively prevent crime and safeguard vulnerable people.

"Whilst there are improvements we must and will make, the report reflects the effectiveness of our strategic planning and performance framework, and our positive inclusive culture.

"We are in an extremely strong position for the future to further improve how we prevent and reduce crime and protect people from harm."