Wiltshire Police 'looks and feels' different after first year under Chief Constable Roper
Catherine Roper says the force has improved since she joined last year
Wiltshire's Police Chief Constable says the force has improved in the last 12 months, but there's still a long way to go.
Catherine Roper has marked a year in charge, taking the role a few months after the force was deemed 'inadequate' following an inspection by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).
She's told Greatest Hits Radio that the force 'looks and feels very different' to how it did when she joined in February 2023.
"I promised the communities of Wiltshire that within 12 months the service that they receive from Wilshire police would look and feel very different and I truly believe that that's the case," Chief Constable Roper said.
She added: "We have changed the operating model, we have more neighbourhood resources. Now we have better resilience in our response teams, we're improving our service across the board to make sure that we support victims more and be much more visible and ever present in our communities.
"I'm really proud of what we've achieved."
Chief aims to continue rebuilding public trust
While there's pride in the steps taken so far, the Chief acknowledged this was still an early phase of the journey of improving the service Wiltshire receives from it's Police force, saying the challenge of improving has been her biggest so far.
"The fact that we're in engage does challenge our legitimacy," she said, "people are being told by an independent group that we're not providing the service that we should.
"I think it will continue to be the biggest challenge because ultimately I cannot keep Wilshire safe unless people trust me for them to pick up the phone and to call my people to give them support when they need it."
Chief Constable Roper is set on continuing to rebuild the trust of Wiltshire's communities that has been lost.
"We know that there are still particular parts of our communities that are really challenged in terms of trust, confidence and calling us for help, particularly on violence against women and girls and some other areas and other hate crimes."
When she took the role, Chief Constable Roper identified three key priorities - safer public spaces, tackling violence and burglary.
The Force will continue concentrating on these areas moving forward.