Bedfordshire Police requires improvement in reducing crime and preventing offending. The force requires improvement in investigating crime. It is good at tackling anti-social behaviour.
Bedfordshire Police is a small, very low cost force. It faces some complex policing challenges, with unusually high levels of serious threats and criminality that are not normally dealt with by a force of its size.
Over the last two years, and in response to required budget reductions, police officer numbers have been cut to such a low level that the ability of the force to provide an effective policing service to the public has been put at risk. The new chief constable has recognised this; she is grasping the issue, taking steps to increase officer numbers and to reorganise the force so it is better placed to meet the policing challenges in Bedfordshire. This all takes time, and the changes have yet to take effect.
Currently, HMIC has serious concerns about the force’s ability to reduce crime, investigate offending and provide an effective service to victims.
The lack of effective systems and the right number of appropriately trained police officers and staff in important areas of policing have resulted in fundamental weaknesses in the way the force responds to victims of crime, especially those who are the most vulnerable. Force priorities are not clearly understood by frontline officers. Priorities have a tendency to change when new threats or areas of risk are identified, only compounding the problem. The force’s ability to do preventive work in neighbourhoods is limited; officers and staff are often too stretched to do so – their time is spent reacting to emergencies.
HMIC has had consistent and serious concerns about the service to victims of domestic abuse, and has returned to the force to assess progress a number of times over the last year. The most recent inspection in October 2014 identified very early signs of an improved approach, but these changes need to translate rapidly into an improved service to victims.
Despite all of this, there are a number of positives. The force works well with partners, such as local councils, to identify and support victims of anti-social behaviour. Its strong partnership working also enables the force to tackle those offenders who cause the most crime and disruption to communities. Generally the force is effective in preventing crimes that cause high levels of harm such as gang and gun-related crime, prostitution and other organised criminality. There has been an improvement in victim satisfaction over the last year and the force has invested in a new victim focused approach known as CARE, which sets clear expectations on how staff should engage with victims.
HMIC will revisit Bedfordshire Police by April 2015 to undertake a full diagnostic inspection. This will draw on external expertise, with the aim of identifying any further measures to assist the senior leadership of Bedfordshire Police to improve the service it provides to the public.
Further insights on effectiveness
The domestic abuse inspection found that there were serious failings in the way Bedfordshire responded to victims of domestic abuse. HMIC’s principal concern was the force’s inability to provide a consistently effective response to safeguarding victims. A further domestic abuse inspection in October 2014 found very early signs of an improved approach: there is now a new domestic abuse investigation unit in place, which is responsible for investigating crimes, safeguarding victims and ensuring offenders are brought swiftly to justice; staffing numbers in the unit have increased; and there are now domestic abuse advisors in the force control room to help ensure victims get the right police response from the outset. These organisational changes need to translate rapidly into an improved service to victims.
The custody inspection found that, despite some good individual care for detainees, the lack of improvement in police custody suites in Bedfordshire was disappointing. However, the chief constable immediately put measures in place to address the concerns.
The crime inspection found there was an effective process for identifying and prioritising tackling organised criminal groups operating in the area. There was room for improvement in ensuring that local policing units are involved in strategies to disrupt their activities.
The Strategic Policing Requirement inspection found that Bedfordshire had, or had access to through collaboration with other forces regionally, the necessary capability to tackle terrorism, civil emergency, serious organised crime and public disorder, but not a large-scale cyber incident.
