West Midlands Police 'failing victims' as 38,000 crimes ‘go unrecorded’
More than 38,000 crimes reported to West Midlands Police go unrecorded each year, according to a damning inspection.
The report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services rated the force ‘inadequate’ for crime recording.
It found around 83 per cent of crimes reported to the force are recorded, based on the period from July last year to January this year, leaving 17 per cent – 38,800 – unrecorded. But West Midlands Police has said the figures are not accurate.
The unrecorded crimes include sexual offences, violent crime and domestic abuse.
The report states: “This means that on too many occasions, the force is failing victims of crime. The force must take improvements in several areas. There are too many failures to make the correct crime-recording decision at the first opportunity.
“Not all staff and officers have a good understanding of crime-recording requirements, and limited supervision means poor crime-recording decision are not corrected at the earliest opportunity.”
The police force must identify and address its failures within six months, the report has recommended.
It must, the report adds, ensure emphasis is placed on the account of the victim at the point of a reported crime, particularly in domestic abuse cases.
HM Inspector of Constabulary Wendy Williams said: “I am very disappointed with the result of our recent inspection into how West Midlands Police records crime. In particular, the force needs to improve how it manages cases of domestic abuse.
“We found a large number of cases where safeguarding requirements for victims had not been considered or recorded, and for which no investigation had been carried out.
“This is a cause of serious concern. It is encouraging that the force has taken steps to remedy this, and we will be monitoring how this translates in to real improvements.”
“I expect the force to make rapid progress in implementing the recommendations we make in this report.
"The serious causes of concern found during this inspection are such that HMICFRS will re-visit the force in early 2018 to assess progress.”
Deputy Chief Constable Louisa Rolfe, said: “While we broadly accept the data underpinning the report, it is certainly not accurate to claim 38,000 crimes have occurred and not been recorded.
“A significant number of these incidents were recorded on our systems but just not classified correctly.
“This report focuses on our technical compliance with the National Crime Recording System and, as such, is about administration and the interaction between different computer systems used to record crime.
“We are also disappointed by the author’s assertion that officers and staff are ‘failing to make correct crime recording decisions at the first opportunity’.”
West Midlands Police & Crime Commissioner David Jamieson, added: “I want victims of crime to have confidence in reporting crimes to West Midlands Police.
“I have asked the force to make rapid improvements, ensuring that safeguarding is as robust as possible. I welcome the re-inspection in early 2018.”
