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Gloucestershire Constabulary needs to improve how it responds to the public, the police inspectorate has said.

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PEEL 2023–2025: An inspection of Gloucestershire Constabulary

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) graded Gloucestershire Constabulary’s performance across nine areas of policing and found the constabulary was outstanding in one area, good in one area, adequate in two areas, requires improvement in four areas and inadequate in one area.

HMICFRS said the constabulary has made several improvements since its last inspection, particularly in how and when it records crime, where its performance was outstanding. Inspectors also said that officers are provided with training in how to effectively engage with the public, carry out stop and search, and use force appropriately.

However, the inspectorate said the constabulary needs to improve its response to the public, particularly the time it takes to answer emergency and non-emergency calls. It also said that Gloucestershire Constabulary should ensure officers and staff have the right skills and experience to carry out quality investigations.

His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Wendy Williams yesterday said:

“I have concerns about the performance of Gloucestershire Constabulary in keeping people safe, reducing crime and providing victims with an effective service. In particular, I have serious concerns about how it responds to the public.

“Since our last inspection, the constabulary has made significant efforts to improve in the areas we highlighted as causes of concern or areas of improvement, which I recognise. But, despite these improvements, more is required to place the constabulary in a position where it is consistently providing a good standard of service to its local communities.

“I look forward to seeing how the constabulary continues to work to improve its performance, which I will be closely monitoring.”

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PEEL 2023–2025: An inspection of Gloucestershire Constabulary

Notes

1. For further information, please contact the HMICFRS Press Office on 0300 071 6781 or HMICPressOffice@hmicfrs.gov.uk.
2. In 2014, we introduced our police effectiveness, efficiency, and legitimacy (PEEL) inspections, which assess the performance of all 43 police forces in England and Wales. Since then, we have been continuously adapting our approach.
3. We have continued our intelligence-led, continual assessment approach, rather than the annual PEEL inspections we used in previous years.
4. We have also changed our approach to graded judgments. We now assess forces against the characteristics of good performance, and we more clearly link our judgments to causes of concern and areas for improvement.
5. It isn’t possible to make direct comparisons between the grades awarded in this PEEL inspection and those from the previous cycle of PEEL inspections. This is because we have increased our focus on making sure forces are achieving appropriate outcomes for the public, and in some cases, we have changed the aspects of policing we inspect.
6. Read more information about the new PEEL assessment framework 2023-2025.