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The force says...

Hertfordshire covers 634 square miles, 70 percent of the county is designated as rural, whilst four population centres have over 50,000 residents: Hemel Hempstead, St Albans, Stevenage and Watford. The standard of living is mostly high, with low unemployment and residents generally healthy, well-educated and well paid, however there are areas of deprivation and social exclusion. The population of 1.18m continues to increase, rapidly rising from 1.02m in 2001. 19.2 percent of residents are from ethnic minority groups.

The constabulary’s 2017/18 budget is £197m; £164.5m is currently spent on staff. The workforce comprises of 1,959 police officers (+53 compared to last year), 209 police community support officers (-20), 1,523 police staff (+83) and 261 special constables (+3).

The constabulary maintains a strong local policing focus through ten community safety partnerships aligned to local authority areas. Each has dedicated neighbourhood, local response and crime teams, supported by inter-agency partnerships and centralised specialist support. There is significant collaboration, chiefly through its strategic alliance with Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire which provides protective services and a range of other operational and support functions increasing effectiveness and efficiency.

Recorded crime has reflected national trends increasing by 16.0 percent in 2016/17, the increases predominantly attributed to reports of assaults, harassment and domestic abuse. Whilst this rise is considered to be mainly the result of increased victim confidence and improvements made to ensure accurate crime recording, an increase in acquisitive crime has also been witnessed.

Keeping people safe through safeguarding, in particular those who are vulnerable, remains a key priority. The constabulary has collaborated with partner agencies to further strengthen this area during the last year including, for example, the fire and rescue service. Additionally there has been increased resourcing and focus within the force control room ensuring improved handling of incoming calls and the management of risk to the public.

Disclaimer: the above statement has been prepared by Hertfordshire Constabulary. The views and information in it are not necessarily those of HMICFRS.