Gwent Police ‘Good’ at Keeping People Safe and Reducing Crime

A report published today has found that Gwent Police has improved the way it protects vulnerable people from harm and that victims are now more readily identified and receive better support. The report also highlights that the Force understands and responds to serious and organised crime well and is effective at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Following an inspection in 2015, the Police Effectiveness report published Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) today has graded Gwent Police on its overall effectiveness by looking at four specific areas: ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

1. How effective is the force at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour and keeping people safe? ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

2. How effective is the force at investigating crime and managing offenders? ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

3. How effective is the force at protecting from harm those who are vulnerable and supporting victims? ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

4. How effective is the force at tackling serious and organised crime, including its arrangements for fulfilling its national policing responsibilities? ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Gwent Police received an overall rating of ‘good’ in the report with HMIC emphasising that the Force carries out ‘high quality investigations’, manages them effectively and has made good progress since investigations of crime were found to require improvement in 2014. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The report also highlights that Gwent Police: ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· has improved how it protects vulnerable people from harm and that they are now more readily identified and receive better support; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· ensures that victims are safe and kept informed about how their case is progressing; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· understands and responds to serious and organised crime well and works well to identify, investigate and bring dangerous and prolific offenders to justice; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· prevents the most prolific criminals from committing further crime and that this is clearly central to the force’s efforts to protect communities; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· is increasingly focusing on so-called hidden crimes such as domestic abuse and child sexual exploitation in order to protect the most vulnerable people; ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

· And is effective at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour and that it is a clear priority for them. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

During their inspection, HMIC collected data from Gwent Police, reviewed case files and surveyed the public to seek their views on the effectiveness of the force. They surveyed and interviewed representatives from partner organisations to gather evidence about the effectiveness of their working relationships with the force and they also made numerous unannounced visits to police stations to talk to frontline officers and staff about their work. According to the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Gwent, Ian Johnston, the report published today reflects the latest figures which demonstrate a significant increase in the ‘overall satisfaction’ of crime victims in the service they receive. Praising the Force on yet another good report, Mr Johnston said: “Protecting people from serious harm is one of the key priorities in my police and crime plan and the Chief Constable and all the officers and staff working for Gwent Police have remained determined and focused on improving services to some of the most vulnerable people in our communities. It is pleasing to hear that all of that hard work has been recognised by HMIC and that the Force has been found to be effective at protecting from harm those who are most vulnerable. This report is very good news and the challenge now is to build further still on the findings of the inspectors. You can rest assured that the Force and all the partners we work with in the community are fully committed to doing so.” The Chief Constable of Gwent Police, Jeff Farrar, said: “This is further good news and extremely encouraging to see the progress the Force made to be graded ‘Good’ in another HMIC inspection. This reinforces the progress the Force has made and demonstrates that we are not only good at preventing and investigating crime and anti-social behaviour, but that we understand that protecting our most vulnerable and dealing with serious and organised crime are extremely important as well. There is always more to do but I am proud to be leading such a committed and professional team.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​