Labour and Conservative PCC candidates react to report into Cleveland Police

Cleveland Police was rated inadequate in all areas by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in 2019 – with inappropriate behaviour at a senior level, a failure to protect victims and a lack of leadership all uncovered.

Now a returning visit has found improvements in support for domestic abuse victims and effort to catch criminals.

But there are still significant shortcomings in cases involving vulnerable youngsters and how crimes are investigated.

Two candidates have thrown their hat in the ring to become Cleveland’s new Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) in elections in May.

Former Labour MP Dr Paul Williams will be on the ballot with former Redcar and Cleveland Councillor and Conservative candidate Steve Turner.

Inspectors returned to the force in November and found there had been strides in timely arrests of offenders and better engagement with victims.

However, their report carried out during lockdown found only just over half of investigations were of a “good standard” – with struggles more apparent in cases involving vulnerable adults and children.

The Inspectorate also found children were being held for too long overnight due to delays in getting appropriate adults to turn up.

Six children were detained for over 20 hours in July and August.

Ex-Stockton South MP Paul Williams will take on the Labour rosette at the polls in May.

In response to the latest probe, Dr Williams said nothing was more important than protecting vulnerable people, especially children.

He added: “This report shows that Cleveland Police is improving, but there’s still some way to go until it’s good enough.

“Credit is due to everyone at Cleveland Police who have worked hard to get this far.

“They’ve had significant challenges with covid, losing 500 officers since 2010, and new recruits still lacking experience.

“We must have a police force that we can trust and that helps us all feel safe.

“If I’m elected as PCC on May 6, I’ll be relentless in pushing progress so we can all be proud of Cleveland Police.”

‘Bitter-sweet’

Embattled former PCC Barry Coppinger stepped down in September last year.

The Labour commissioner had faced calls to resign in the wake of the dire 2019 inspection – and later announced his intention not to stand in May elections due last year.

He stayed in post after the pandemic put paid to last year’s election but resigned later in the year citing stress and how he’d felt “under siege” since the damning probe.

The latest HM probe honed in on the force’s response to vulnerable Teessiders in light of the dire problems uncovered in 2019.

Steve Turner will represent the Conservatives at the polls in May.

He believed the report meant heralded was a “bitter-sweet day” for Cleveland given the 2019 investigation had graded the force “the worst ever”.

Mr Turner added: “It’s sweet in respect of the fact that there is hope for the future and some green shoots of recovery.

“We can see improvements in the force’s approach to domestic violence situations and its support for its victims.

“There are strides forward in crime recording and the managing of suspects and offenders.

“And the biggest win for me however is the vast improvement in the confidence the inspectorate has in the new executive and senior leadership team.”

‘Immense’

However, the Tory candidate said the scale of the problem facing the face was “still immense” – and blamed Mr Coppinger for the troubles.

Mr Turner added: “You just can’t turn around an organisation in a matter of months that has consistently failed to have a structured plan to succeed, with people who haven’t been held to account for their performance.

“Labour’s PCC Barry Coppinger oversaw our force’s decline, and then, when he was shown how bad it had got in 2019, he failed to put any plans in place to turn it around.”

The former councillor said the force was still years away from “getting it right”.

Mr Turner said: “We’re still not making improvements in our recording standards for violent crime – and many other serious crimes are not being recorded or investigated.

“Overall though I believe we must look at this report in a more positive than negative light.

“We will have a new PCC in May who must have a long-term plan that doesn’t just address these issues but takes us beyond average and on into excellent.

“We’ve laid some of those foundation stones and with a strong plan and new oversight and leadership, we can rebuild our force into something we can all be proud of again.”

‘A fair review’

Acting PCC Lisa Oldroyd has been at the helm since Mr Coppinger resigned in September – and has kept the office running since then.

She was satisfied the latest inspection was a “fair review” of where Cleveland Police stood at the moment.

Ms Oldroyd said: “I share the Inspectorate’s view that the Force has made progress in most areas relating to the protection of vulnerable people, but it needs to continue to improve to achieve a good standard of service.

“When it comes to the safeguarding of vulnerable adults and children, there can be no complacency and the public rightly have an expectation that the police, along with other agencies, protect the most vulnerable.

“I am aware of how the challenges and restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have hindered the progress of the force in taking forward some of the changes planned under the Chief Constable’s five year improvement plan.

“There has been notable progress in some areas, namely within the force control room, in responding to domestic abuse and in how the force records crime.

“That said, there is still more to do – particularly within the area of protecting vulnerable children.”

Road to recovery

But despite the room for improvement, the acting commissioner was confident the force was heading in the right direction – praising Chief Constable Richard Lewis and his improvement plan.

Ms Oldroyd added: “We’ve worked hard to ensure that police officer recruitment targets have been met ahead of schedule by providing funding to the force in advance of the Government’s national investment.

“Along with the recent precept increase, this has provided the Chief Constable with the necessary resources to continue with his five year recovery plan – and I will be holding him to account for using those resources efficiently and effectively.”

The commissioner agreed with the watchdog’s comments on the importance of working closely with councils and other agencies to protect vulnerable adults and youngsters – and said the office would do “all it could” to work with partners.

She added: “After the challenges of the pandemic, and as restrictions ease, I would expect the pace of change across the force to accelerate.”

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