Chief defends force after inspection

Anthony Bangham acknowledged that there was work to do following today's report from HM Inspectorate of Constabularies.

But he said the report – which rated the force as "requiring improvement" – also identified a number of positive areas in its performance.

“Although we are disappointed that the inspectorate felt we had not responded well enough to previous recommendations, there were several examples in the inspection of positive work ongoing across the force area," he said.

"This included recognition for the force’s work to understand the signs of vulnerability and our investigations involving vulnerable people.

"We are pleased to see this, as it clearly reflects the force’s aim to focus on protecting the most vulnerable people in our communities."

He said the force covered a large geographic area with a diverse range of issues.

The report was particularly critical of the way the force dealt with serious and organised crime, and Mr Bangham said during the last six months it had looked at working more closely with the community to tackle this.

"We now have much better partnership structures in place focused on identifying the specific issues in each community, working with the appropriate partners and addressing these using a range of approaches and tactics to disrupt and reduce criminal activity.

“Accepting as an organisation we were not where we should have been last year in respect to the areas inspected, I am confident that significant focus has been given to addressing the areas highlighted."

Mr Bangham added that next month the force would introduce new working patterns that would mean that more officers and staff would be deployed at the times of highest demand.

"This will ensure we have the right people available at the right time to deliver the best possible protection to our communities," he said.

"This new model ensures clear focus on identifying criminal activity, arresting the offenders and protecting vulnerable victims.

"We will continue to work closely with all our communities to ensure we understand and prioritise the issues which concern them most."

He added that since the inspection the force had implemented new technology and systems which ensured officers and staff were better equipped with the best information to prevent and detect crime.

“We fully acknowledge that these are all areas identified by the inspectorate as requiring our focus and this is exactly what we have done," said Mr Bangham.

"With the progress we have already made I am confident that we are comprehensively addressing all the recommendations.”