Stop and search use doubles in Peterborough - but arrests fall

Figures revealed by the Peterborough Telegraph show that the number of people stopped and searched by police in the city has increased from 694 between October 2018 and September 2019 to 1,126 over the following 12 month period.

Despite this, the number of arrests from the tactic has dropped from 132 to 118.

Moreover, the figures show white people make up around 50 per cent of all people stopped and searched during this period despite making up a much bigger part of the population in Peterborough.

They also made up around half of the arrests from stop and search in the past year.

Black people make up around 2.5 per cent of the population in Peterborough but were stopped six per cent of the time and made up 12 per cent of the arrests.

A recent report presented to the Cambridgeshire Police and Crime Panel also revealed that in 2018/19 the stop and search rate per 1,000 people in the county by ethnicity was three for Asian people, 10 for black people and one for white people.

Peterborough city councillor Ansar Ali, Labour member for North ward, who sits on the panel, said: “I continue to be concerned about the latest stop and search statistics that show that ethnic minorities in Peterborough and Cambridgeshire are disproportionately represented and are more likely to be stopped and searched.

“I appreciate the police have to use all necessary and legitimate measures to catch criminals, however, this use of stop and search gives a rise to lack of confidence in policing.

“I will continue to challenge the constabulary and urge that this issue is addressed to give confidence that assures the BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) communities. We need to ensure all our communities have confidence in policing.”

Cambridgeshire police are currently seeking volunteers to join a newly formed independent panel to scrutinise stop and search and use of force in the county.

Those interested in volunteering, or who would like more information, should email [email protected].

A police spokesperson said: “Stop and search is a vital tactic that we use to keep the public safe. We know it can be an intrusive police power and as such must be used professionally and with great care.

“It is a tactical option available to officers and we recognise the importance of transparency and independent scrutiny of our use of this legislation. We have an independent Stop and Search Scrutiny Panel which consists of members of the public from outside policing. They meet regularly to carefully analyse our use of the tactic and look at specific cases to ensure our use is lawful, proportionate and appropriate.

“We are currently refreshing our scrutiny panel who will continue to support us by providing valuable feedback on the use of this power.

“The panel will also be able to identify trends across the county and, as such, raise any concerns.

“We are proactive in our approach to addressing disproportionality in the use of stop and search, which is tracked and reviewed to ensure we uphold an ethical position and use of this power.

“The complexity of crime committed across the county grows and we are increasingly experiencing people travelling to Cambridgeshire from elsewhere in the country to commit crime.

“We want the public to feel confident in raising concerns about the conduct of officers and staff and take seriously any concerns or complaints about conduct.”

Bernadetta Omondi, chair of the Peterborough Racial Equality Council and Black History Month Committee, said: “In my opinion stop and search should only be used if it gives results from the arrests, otherwise it is a waste of resources and a tool to intimidate suspects.

“The intention of stop and search to make the community safe is good, but do all officers follow the guidelines? If so the black community would not feel they are a target of this tactic.

“I would like the tactic to be used professionally, fairly and proportionally - there should be accountability by the police.

“If this mechanism is not working then the police should stop using this tool and look for fairer ways to make arrests and work closely with communities to make our neighbourhoods safe.

“Stop and search should not be used by ethnicity as this will lead to racial bias.

“I’d urge community members to join the scrutiny panel to be part of the process to measure the effectiveness of stop and search.”