Avon and Somerset Police says improvements are on the way after it was revealed this week that the force is the third worst at recording crime in the country.
Police in Avon and Somerset fail to log 33% of offences, says the new study published here by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, even though the national average is 19%.
The HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary says that nationwide hundreds of thousands of victims are denied justice by “inexcusably poor” crime recording.
He added: “The first duty of the police is to protect the public and reduce crime. This is not about numbers and dry statistics; it’s about victims and the protection of the public.”
Avon and Somerset’s Deputy Chief Constable Gareth Morgan, pictured right, said: “We have been working to address the issues identified in the report since we agreed to participate in the pre-inspection process over 12 months ago,” he said.
“In the midst of the HMIC’s findings, they found no evidence that officers and staff felt pressured to act unethically or inappropriately.”
“In addressing the recommendations in this report, Avon and Somerset Constabulary will be focusing on the systems and processes which support the recording of crime alongside addressing the culture and values of the service to provide the best possible service to the public.”
“I am confident that we have begun to put in place the necessary actions to deliver the required changes and expect a significant improvement in performance over the next six months.”
The report says that around 50% of the police forces across England and Wales have made errors in recording rapes, while 800,000 offences, including a third of violent crimes, are not logged across the UK. It also states that almost a million 999 calls are ignored annually across the country.
