Humberside Police 'requires improvement'
HMIC has rated the force as 'requiring improvement' in the way it efficiently keeps people safe and reduces crime.
Humberside Police must do more to protect the public from future crime - that's the findings of a recent inspection by HMIC.
The police watchdog has rated the force as 'requiring improvement' in the way it efficiently keeps people safe and reduces crime.
But Humberside Police have made some improvements from last year when they were rated the worst for efficiency in the country.
The report found the force weren't attending incidents quick enough and need to work more closey with partners to improve their overall efficiency and effectiveness.
HM Inspector of Constabulary Mike Cunningham said:
“HMIC’s most recent inspection to Humberside Police assessed the force as requiring improvement in how it efficiently keeps people safe and reduces crime. During our inspection, we found that the force has some understanding of demand for its services, but that more needs to be done.
“Humberside Police has taken steps to match officers and staff to demand from the public for their service however, I was disappointed to find that the numbers of officers were not always sufficient to attend priority incidents quickly. This means that sometimes the service to the public was below the standard set by the force.
“In particular, HMIC will also be interested to see how the force plans to reduce costs while at the same time working to better understand future demand. "
Humberside Police has responded to the report into efficiency. Chief Constable Justine Curran said:
“This is welcome news and I am pleased that our efforts have been recognised. Modern policing is very a tough job, done by extraordinary individuals, often in difficult circumstances. I’d like to pay tribute to the men and women of the force, who are making a real difference to the communities we serve, every single day."
Hear more from Chief Constable Justine Curran here:
Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner Keith Hunter said:
“When I was elected in May I said I wanted to see a plan from Humberside Police to turn the Force’s performance around and I’m encouraged to see an improvement over last year’s efficiency inspection by HMIC.
“Measuring police performance is not all about the HMI reports, they are just one component in a much bigger picture, but if this report had indicated that in their view there had been little progress since they were last here, then that is something I would have found extremely concerning.
“I have identified a number of the same issues identified by HMIC and have been working with the Chief Constable to reassure myself that plans are being developed to address deficiencies. It is important that I encourage a long term programme of continuous improvement and not a series of knee-jerk reactions to new initiatives or thematic reports.
“That is important because the residents of the Humberside Police area deserve a police Force focussed on delivering to them the service they want and need, so I am after an incremental, sustainable improvement.
“This report is a first small step, there is still some way to go but I do think the Force are planting the right seeds and my assessment into the future will be based on how they cultivate those.”