Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling said: “In the past two years we have made significant improvements in recording crime with an increase in accuracy from 68 per cent to 85 per cent. This means that in well over eight out of 10 cases, crime is accurately being recorded.
“Although we have made significant progress, we recognise that there is still more work to do to ensure that we are where we want to be. One of the key developments will be the introduction of a new IT system that will allow officers to record crime at the first contact. So when the victim rings us to report a crime, it will automatically be recorded. This is a major step forward and should be in place within the next 12 months.
“Reviewing the way crime is recorded is important but it is the service that victims get that is the priority. Many victims of crime are satisfied with the service they receive, even when the crime is not recorded properly and the report doesn’t highlight this. Whilst there are some unacceptable crime recording failings, many are simply administrative issues and do not mean we have failed the victim. A significant amount of activity has taken place to address these administrative problems and we will continue to work hard to address this. It is important to recognise that there is nothing in the report to suggest that the integrity of officers and staff is in question.
“Violent crime is highlighted as one of the most problematic areas. Three quarters of cases are recorded correctly but there is still further work to do. It is important to remember that violent crime includes many crime categories from violence without injury to serious assault. The majority of the failings were in the less serious categories.
“Overall, although we still need to improve, the progress we have made is really encouraging and further continues, including training for officers and the focus on introducing the new IT system.”
