West Yorkshire Police provides policing services to the county of West Yorkshire. The police force area covers 783 square miles in the north of England. Although there are a number of more affluent areas, West Yorkshire has a high level of poverty. Around 2.3 million people mainly live in the urban conurbation which includes the cities of Leeds, Wakefield and Bradford, as well as several large towns surrounded by rural areas. The resident population is ethnically diverse, with 18 percent from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, and is increased by the very large number of university students and the large numbers, who visit, socialise in, commute into, or travel through the area each year. The transport infrastructure includes major rail stations and an airport.
HMICFRS independently assesses police forces and policing across activity from neighbourhood teams to serious crime and the fight against terrorism – in the public interest.
In preparing our reports, we ask the questions which citizens would ask, and publish the answers in accessible form, using our expertise to interpret the evidence. We provide authoritative information to allow the public to compare the performance of their force against others, and our evidence is used to drive improvements in the service to the public.
Force Area |
783 square miles | |
Population |
2.31m people | 5% local 10 yr change |
Workforce |
86% frontline | |
| 3.91 per 1000 population | ||
| 10% change in local workforce since 2010 | ||
Victim-based crimes |
0.05 per person | |
| Local 5 year trend | ||
Cost |
51p per person per day local | |
Mark Burns-Williamson
Chief Constable John Robins QPM, appointed July 2019
