Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has announced a significant improvement in crime recording by Dyfed-Powys Police.
In May 2021, the inspectorate highlighted a concern that the police force was recording only 87.6 percent of all reported crimes, leaving approximately 4,400 crimes unrecorded each year.
Urgent Recommendations Issued
To address this issue, HMICFRS made three urgent recommendations to Dyfed-Powys Police.
These recommendations included enhancing crime recording systems and processes, focusing on domestic abuse cases, ensuring adequate supervision of crime-recording decisions, and providing comprehensive training for officers and staff involved in crime recording.
Progress in Crime Recording
One year later, in 2022, HMICFRS revisited Dyfed-Powys Police and noted substantial progress
One year later, in 2022, HMICFRS revisited Dyfed-Powys Police and noted substantial progress. The force is now estimated to record 91.6 percent of reported crimes (excluding fraud), 88.4 percent of violent offenses, and 98.8 percent of sexual offenses.
The latter represents a significant improvement from the 92.2 percent recorded in 2021. Consequently, HMICFRS has confirmed that the previous cause of concern will now be discharged.
Inspector's Feedback
Wendy Williams, Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary, said, "Accurate crime recording helps police forces prioritize investigations by using suitably skilled staff to give victims the service they deserve. It also helps forces to manage their resources and plan effectively for the future."
Williams expressed satisfaction with the implementation of the HMICFRS's recommendations, stating "The people of Wales will rightly expect Dyfed-Powys Police to ensure their reports of crime are recorded, reported, and taken seriously. On their behalf, I welcome the improvements that have been made over the past year. We will monitor the force’s performance to make sure that public safety continues to come first."
In May 2021, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) warned that Dyfed-Powys Police was only recording an estimated 87.6 percent of all reported crime – meaning an estimated 4,400 crimes were not recorded each year.
Three urgent recommendations
As a result, HMICFRS issued Dyfed-Powys Police with a cause of concern and made three urgent recommendations, including that the force should:
- Improve its systems and processes for recording reported crimes, paying particular attention to domestic abuse;
- Ensure adequate supervision of the crime-recording decisions made by police officers and staff; and
- Provide better training for all police officers and staff working on crime recording.
HMICFRS revisited Dyfed-Powys Police
HMICFRS revisited Dyfed-Powys Police in 2022 and found that the force had made good progress against these recommendations.
It said the force is now estimated to be recording:
- 91.6 percent of all reported crime (excluding fraud);
- 88.4 percent of violent offenses; and
- 98.8 percent of sexual offenses, a statistically significant improvement compared to an estimated 92.2 percent in 2021.
HMICFRS said Dyfed-Powys Police has also provided crime recording training to all staff. The inspectorate confirmed today that it would now discharge the cause of concern.
Dyfed-Powys Police’s failure
Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary, Wendy Williams, said: "Accurate crime recording helps police forces prioritize investigations by using suitably skilled staff to give victims the service they deserve. It also helps forces to manage their resources and plan effectively for the future. After previously raising concerns in 2018 and again in 2021 about Dyfed-Powys Police’s failure to consistently record crimes, I am pleased that the force has now acted on our recommendations."
She adds, "The people of Wales will rightly expect Dyfed-Powys Police to ensure their reports of crime are recorded, reported, and taken seriously. On their behalf, I welcome the improvements that have been made over the past year. We will monitor the force’s performance to make sure that public safety continues to come first."
