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Derbyshire Constabulary works well with safeguarding partners, but must make significant improvements in how it responds to children at risk, the police inspectorate has said.

Get the report – Derbyshire Constabulary: National child protection inspection

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) graded Derbyshire Constabulary’s performance across five areas, assessing how well it safeguards children who are at risk. It found the constabulary was good in one area, adequate in one area, requires improvement in two areas and inadequate in one area.

HMICFRS said that the constabulary understands its statutory responsibilities and has constructive working relationships with safeguarding partners. It is also taking steps to strengthen its child protection governance arrangements.

However, the inspectorate said that it had several concerns about the constabulary’s performance in safeguarding children at risk, including:

• examples of risks being graded inaccurately and long delays in officers attending incidents to speak with children;
• investigations involving children not always being allocated to the most appropriate personnel;
• the lack of an overarching vulnerability strategy which would help personnel recognise and respond to risks affecting children; and
• insufficient support for the well-being of the constabulary’s child protection investigators who are regularly exposed to traumatic information.

In April 2026, the inspectorate issued an accelerated cause of concern relating to how the constabulary responds to children at risk. The constabulary has since made some improvements which the inspectorate will continue to monitor.

His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Roy Wilsher OBE QFSM said:

“I have concerns about Derbyshire Constabulary’s performance in safeguarding children at risk. In view of the findings from our inspection, I have been in contact with the temporary chief constable, as significant improvement is needed.

“However, it is important to recognise the commitment and effort of frontline and specialist officers who work in challenging and complex circumstances. During our inspection, we saw evidence of officers and staff who are clearly dedicated to protecting children.

“The constabulary understands its statutory responsibilities and has an active role in multi-agency safeguarding arrangements. But, we found that its response to incidents involving children is poor.

“I have received assurances from the temporary chief constable that senior leaders are taking our findings very seriously and are determined to oversee improvements. I will closely monitor progress in Derbyshire Constabulary over the coming months.”

Get the report – Derbyshire Constabulary: National child protection inspection

Notes

• For further information, please contact the HMICFRS Press Office on 0300 071 6781 or HMICPressOffice@hmicfrs.gov.uk.
• We now make graded judgements for child protection inspections to be consistent with our PEEL (police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy) programme of inspections.
• This allows the public to see how well their local force is performing from a set of easy-to-understand categories.
• Read more about our national child protection inspections.