Police watchdog says North Wales Police is ‘GOOD’ overall at keeping people safe and reducing crime

North Wales Police (NWP) has been rated GOOD in how it keeps people safe and reduces crime.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) gave the rating following inspections of all forces in Wales and England.

The police watchdog looked at the effectiveness of North Wales Police capabilities focusing on five areas of policing:

1. How effective are police forces at preventing crime, tackling anti-social behaviour and keeping people safe?
2. How effective are forces at investigating crime and reducing re-offending?
3. How effective are forces at protecting those who are vulnerable from harm, and supporting victims?
4. How effective are forces at tackling serious and organised crime?
5. How effective are the forces’ specialist capabilities?

The report found the force to be good at preventing crime, tackling anti-social behaviour and keeping people safe.

It is also good at how it investigates crime and reduces re-offending and good at tackling serious and organised crime.

[miptheme_quote author=”North Wales Police Chief Constable Mark Polin” style=”boxquote text-left”]I am delighted that North Wales has been recognised as a good force and I am very proud of how officers and staff have responded to ensure that we have achieved this recognition. Protecting those who are most vulnerable is a priority for us and we are always looking at way to improve. [/miptheme_quote]

The force’s specialist capabilities were also ranked as being good with robust plans in place to respond in the event of a major disruption to services and teams being “well prepared” to respond to a firearms incident.

HM Inspector of Constabulary Wendy Williams said:

Due to the improvements made since 2015, I am pleased to report that North Wales Police is judged to be ‘good’ at how effectively it keeps people safe and reduces crime.

The force continues to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour effectively, with some good work being undertaken with respect to how it consults with the public to understand the threats and risks faced by local people.

The inspection found NWP has a good understanding of the communities it serves, including some which are hard to reach.

It is aware of some complex, emerging or hidden threats, and works with partner organisations to protect the public.

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The Inspector found the force has improved how it investigates crime and reduces re-offending.

And says “the force provides a good initial response to victims contacting the police, as well as during subsequent investigations.”

Room for improvement;

The report does says NWP ‘requires improvement’ in how it protects those who are vulnerable from harm and supporting victims.

Overall, the force needs to improve how it protects vulnerable people from harm. I am disappointed it has not made enough progress since our inspection in 2015. It has made some progress, however, namely in the way it identifies and assesses vulnerable victims at the first point of contact and allocates the right response

The force allocates the majority of investigations to appropriately skilled officers and staff, but on some occasions, officers without the necessary skills and experience are allocated high risk and complex cases says HMI Wendy Williams.

I have identified this as an area that requires improvement for the force. The force is also generally good at how it pursues suspects and manages offenders and reduces re-offending with effective offender management. I would like to see it improve its approach to managing foreign criminals.

The force works hard to deter people from becoming involved in organised crime;

Overall, the force is good at tackling serious and organised crime. Although the force has an inconsistent approach to responding to known organised crime groups, it works well with the Regional Organised Crime Unit and works hard to deter people from becoming involved in serious and organised crime

Arfon Jones, the new North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner at Police HQ in Colwyn Bay.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones said:

I am encouraged by the findings of the report that will provide reassurance to the people of North Wales.

The rating by HMIC is a tribute to the dedication of the officers and staff of North Wales Police along with the leadership of the chief constable and his senior team.

There is always room for improvement and I will continue to scrutinise the force and hold the chief constable to account to ensure the region is policed efficiently and effectively.

Read the report in full (PDF) – PEEL: police effectiveness 2016 – North Wales Police

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