The report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) on ‘police effectiveness’ has been released on Thursday 18 February and is the final element of a three stage process to assess Staffordshire Police’s performance. The HMIC work happened during the first nine months of last year.
The three individual parts of the PEEL inspection resulted in the force receiving a Good, Good and Requires Improvement rating.
The county’s Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Ellis said:
“The force and I have raised concerns about the way the supporting vulnerable people assessment was done and it was that specific element which resulted in the Requires Improvement judgement.
“The assessment of Outstanding for public engagement is also questionable. Over the last six months Staffordshire Police have done exceptional work to improve engagement, including their public visibility by utilising new mobile technology, but at the time HMIC carried out their inspection it did not merit Outstanding.
“HMIC state that Staffordshire Police are working well to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour and that reflects the extra focus being made by the force in that area of work. Tackling serious and organised crime effectively is also highlighted in the findings and that is an aspect of Staffordshire Police’s work I’ve been impressed with since taking office.
“I agree with HMIC that police need to consistently ensure victims are at the heart of all they do and the new Victim Gateway which has been developed by my office, and was launched at the time of the inspection, will assist in ensuring that.
“I’m pleased too that the progress made in joined-up working between the police service and other agencies across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent has been recognised. It is critical that the principle of multiple agencies working jointly to tackle complex issues continues to become the norm, rather than the exception. In Staffordshire, a joint working approach is progressing well and we are seeing the results.
“It does, however, raise questions about the effectiveness of single agency inspection, such as policing by HMIC, when more and more is dependent on collaboration across agencies to achieve more effective public services and results. Anything that creates pressure back towards a silo working mentality is unhelpful.
“That drive in Staffordshire towards collaborative or integrated working means that the way all services are assessed and inspected must evolve to be effective and useful.”
