Cleveland Police fails to report more than 3,000 violent crimes

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has today published an assessment on the accuracy of crime recording in Cleveland Police.

It found that the force properly records around 83% of crimes, but there are still some 'serious concerns' and its crime recording was rated as 'inadequate' overall.

HM Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr said: “While Cleveland Police has implemented many of the recommendations from our last inspection, I still have serious concerns about the force’s crime recording practices.

“We did see some good examples of crime recording practice in complex cases involving modern slavery and sexual offences.

"But the force’s overall performance falls short of our expectation.

"It was particularly troubling to find that almost one in five violent crimes reported to Cleveland Police never makes it onto the books.

“By our estimate, that means over 3,100 violent crimes go unrecorded each year."

He said when a crime isn’t recorded properly, victims might not receive the support services they need and, in some cases, an investigation may not begin.

Mr Parr said failure to record a crime can also prevent proper safeguarding measures from being implemented.

He said: "In Cleveland Police, we found that only around a quarter of domestic abuse victims received adequate safeguarding when a crime was not logged. This leaves them exposed to an unacceptable level of risk and, potentially, harm."

The report found some positives, including vulnerable victims and victims of rape are generally safeguarded well, cancelled crimes were largely cancelled for legitimate reasons and the force has made good progress against the national action plan for crime statistics.

Mr Parr said: "I am confident that the force has the right team in place to respond to our recommendations and make changes for the better.”

Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Constable Simon Nickless said: “The report grades us as good for culture and leadership and good for the efficiency of our crime recording systems.

"Whilst all calls to our control room are recorded and assessed, we recognise that we need to improve.

"Since this inspection in 2017 we have already implemented changes and will continue to do so to ensure we provide the best possible service.”