Bedfordshire PEEL 2017

Bedfordshire Police’s approach to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour is getting better but still requires improvement in some areas. Examples of good practice include:

• a clear vision for local policing from force leaders, which is understood by most officers and staff;
• an improving understanding of, and response to, what matters to local communities; and
• proactive problem solving with other organisations to address underlying causes of crime.

Although the force has made progress since 2016, it still needs to resource its local policing teams fully and continue to develop staff skills in crime prevention and problem solving. It is developing more sophisticated analysis, to focus workforce activity and maximise its positive effect, but should improve:

• how officers and staff use this analysis and evidence to inform their day-to-day activity;
• the consistency of its approach to recording the use of powers and tactics to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour;
• its understanding of local communities, including those groups less likely to communicate with the police; and
• evaluation and sharing of best practice routinely, both internally and with partner organisations.

Bedfordshire Police requires improvement in how it investigates crime and reduces reoffending.

Its crime investigations are generally good and effectively supervised. Most positively, the force:

• uses intelligence well, and regularly updates victims as investigations progress;
• has effective processes in place for ensuring that wanted persons are swiftly located and arrested whenever possible; and
• has had some success in reducing re-offending, with several initiatives in place.

However, the current operating model is negatively affecting the ability of response teams to meet demand for their services. This is causing inconsistencies in the quality of service to victims.

The force needs to improve the risk-assessment process for calls that require a prompt response and improve the timeliness of its initial response to victims.

The force should also work to:

• improve its initial investigation of fraud reported by members of the public, and provide more support to investigators in the community crime team;
• improve its ability to quickly retrieve evidence from mobile phones, computers and other electronic devices, so investigations are not delayed; and
• ensure that checks are routinely conducted on foreign nationals, to verify their identity, nationality and any convictions.

Bedfordshire Police requires improvement in how it protects vulnerable people. The force investigates most crimes involving vulnerable victims to a good standard. It:

• has a good understanding of vulnerability in its area and works closely with partner agencies to analyse available data;
• is training officers and staff to better identify vulnerability, particularly in relation to hidden harm;
• has made progress in its risk assessment of, and response to, children who are reported missing or absent;
• has enhanced its partnership arrangements and support for frontline officers, in order to provide a more effective service for people suffering from mental health conditions; and
• is good at managing sex offenders.

However, officers and staff are dealing with unacceptably high workloads. This increases sickness absence rates and compromises the force’s ability to conduct high-quality investigations or provide tailored support and safeguarding for victims. This needs to be addressed.

The force should also:

• improve its risk assessment and flagging process in the control room, as vulnerabilities are not always being correctly identified;
• ensure frontline officers submit high-quality domestic abuse, stalking, harassment and honour-based violence risk assessments; and
• make better use of legal powers to protect victims of domestic abuse.

Bedfordshire Police responds well to serious and organised crime. It has improved its understanding of organised crime threats, and works well with partner organisations to tackle organised crime groups (OCGs).

The force:

• uses structured methods to assess threats from organised crime and shares data with partner organisations;
• takes proactive steps to search for organised criminal activity, providing local officers and staff with training and online support to develop their knowledge and understanding;
• is systematic in its approach to targeting OCGs for intervention; and
• has improved the way it makes use of the intelligence and powers of partner organisations.

However, the force should do more to involve local policing teams in disrupting organised criminal activity. The force also needs to enhance its ability to prevent serious and organised crime, for example by identifying and supporting young people who are at risk of being drawn into gang violence.

National threats often require forces to work together, across force boundaries. These threats include terrorism, large-scale disorder and civil emergencies. We examined the capabilities in place to respond to these threats, in particular a firearms attack.

Most positively, the force:

• works with other forces to ensure enough trained staff and officers are available to respond to national threats;
• tests its skills in training exercises; and
• has developed a good understanding of the threat to the public from an armed attack.

However, the force should:

• improve its understanding of the time taken for armed officers to attend incidents.