Inspection Report ‘Absolute Testament’ To South Yorkshire Officers
SOUTH Yorkshire Police officers should be proud of themselves for receiving such a positive report from the police inspectorate, the Federation has said.
His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) today published its latest inspection of South Yorkshire Police, and congratulated the force for its performance in keeping people safe and reducing crime.
South Yorkshire Police’s performance was graded across nine areas of policing and was found ‘outstanding’ in three areas, ‘good’ in five areas, and ‘adequate’ in one area. The outstanding areas were preventing crime and anti-social behaviour, protecting vulnerable people, and operating efficiently.
South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent said the results were “astonishing” considering the lack of resources available to the force, and were an “absolute testament” to South Yorkshire Police officers.
Steve said: “A lot of officers are understandably a bit cynical about the way forces are measured by HMIC, as it can sometimes create extra bureaucratic processes.
“But we need to take an enormous positive from this. South Yorkshire Police is one of the poorest-funded forces in the country, and yet we have come out in this report as one of the best-performing.
“Some of the grades we’ve received are astonishingly good, considering the resources that we have within South Yorkshire Police.
“The fact that we’ve achieved this is an absolute testament to everybody in South Yorkshire Police, who are absolutely working their socks off. It’s great that this has been recognised.”
HMICFRS singled out for praise the force’s focus on vulnerable people and the “remarkable results” it had achieved in its approach to domestic abuse victims. It also said that the force was “excellent” in reducing crime and anti-social behaviour through neighbourhood teams.
Steve continued: “Rather than the negative PR that we so often see, which is so often unfair, the public of South Yorkshire should really be celebrating that they’ve got one of the best police forces in the country.
“Absolute credit to everybody in South Yorkshire Police who have achieved this. Even though morale is really low at the moment, I’d like to think that there will be a bit of a smile on officers’ faces today and they will feel proud of what they’ve achieved.”
In the report, His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Roy Wilsher said: “This is an ambitious force that we have seen progress over the years, and it is now achieving some outstanding grades through the hard work of its officers and staff.”