Cambridgeshire police '˜requires improvement' according to official report

The recommendations were made in a report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) in a report published today.

The report said: “HMIC judges that overall Cambridgeshire Constabulary requires improvement in the way it keeps people safe and reduces crime. “The constabulary works very well to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour and protects most victims well, but improvement is needed to ensure the services are consistent and vulnerable people are properly supported.

“There are good arrangements in place to keep communities safe and tackle the most serious crimes. However, the constabulary needs to improve its approach to ensuring that crime investigations are of a consistently good quality so that it can effectively fight crime and bring more offenders to justice.”

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hopkins said the force was disappointed by the findings of the report.

He said: “Today’s HMIC report into effectiveness does not reflect where we want to be as a force and highlights a number of areas in which we are committed to improving.

“The report recognises that we work hard to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour and that we manage offenders well, it also highlights our inconsistency in investigations and keeping victims updated, especially our more vulnerable victims.

“We have already started to address these issues, moving away from targets and towards outcomes that are the best for our victims of crime, but we know we have some way to go.

“We welcome today’s report and will continue to make improvements to ensure we deliver a more consistent service to the people of Cambridgeshire.”

The report added: “Although Cambridgeshire Constabulary generally provides a good service in identifying vulnerable people and responds well to them, there is room for improvement. For example the response to the investigation and safeguarding of domestic abuse victims is a cause of concern to HMIC. The constabulary may not be consistently dealing with domestic abuse offenders in the most appropriate way, to prevent re-offending and protect victims.

To read the report, visit www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmic/peel-assessments/peel-2015/cambridgeshire/