Hampshire Police pledge to attend every burglary report
The commitment's been announced by the Acting Chief Constable
Hampshire Police have promised to attend every report of burglary in the county from now on.
The force has described the offence as 'a devastating crime, which can cause significant distress to victims'.
Up until now, officers have only been deployed when an incident is in progress, but the change in policy follows Hampshire's Police and Crime Commissioner's priority on tackling 'community crimes.
Acting Chief Constable Ben Snuggs said:
“We know that residential burglary has a huge impact on those affected. That is why we are making a commitment to our communities that we will attend every report of a residential dwelling burglary that we receive.
"Over the past few years we have seen a significant decrease in the number of residential burglary offences being committed across Hampshire and Isle of Wight. That means far fewer victims having to pick up the pieces after their home has been broken into.
“At the same time however, we have also seen a reduction in the number of offences which have resulted in charges being brought. This is a priority area for the force to address.
“We know that our initial attendance to burglary victims will improve our outcome rates through identifying early forensic and investigative lines of enquiry which members of the public may not have previously noticed. Our attendance will also help to improve public confidence and help victims to feel safer in their homes, which is a cornerstone of victim-focused policing. Our commitment to attend every residential burglary report will ensure that we take full advantage of the increased use of technology, both within policing and in our communities, such as good quality video doorbell footage, to identify and prosecute those responsible.
“It’s important to remember that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight are safe places to live and work in, with an average of only eight burglaries reported to us a day. We recognise that while the number of these offences may be small, they can in some cases be linked to other forms of criminality, such as drug supply or organised crime. By attending all residential dwelling burglary reports, I want to send a very clear message that we will not tolerate these crimes. We want to give ourselves the very best opportunity to disrupt and deter crime, and catch those criminals who are responsible.
“We will continue to work closely with our communities to identify opportunities to prevent burglary and further reduce the number of victims being affected.”
Donna Jones, Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, said:
“I’m pleased that the Chief agrees with me that every domestic burglary must be responded to and investigated, this is what the public rightly expect and deserve.
“Domestic burglaries are an abhorrent crime and victims deserve an initial response and thorough follow up.
“So often we hear about crimes that have been reported but haven’t received the police response we expect, but I know police officers want to investigate these crimes, and I know they want to get justice for victims.
“Every deployment is an opportunity to identify offenders and increase charge rates.
“Delivering straightforward policing and visibility in response to crimes that matter the most to people is right and proper and I expect this re-focus on deployment and investigation to have a positive effect on communities in both counties.”