Force in national top three for public approval

Wiltshire's police and crime commissioner Philip Wilkinson is "pleased" with the survey results

A police force has welcomed the results of a crime survey, which saw it gain the third-highest public confidence score in England and Wales.

The Office for National Statistics found 58% of people believe Wiltshire Police do an excellent or good job, above the UK average of 49%.

Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Wilkinson said he was "really pleased" but emphasised "there are still 42% who say we could do better" and that trust can be "easily lost".

Mr Wilkinson explained "everything is getting better" at the force, but still wants to see a better funding settlement in future.

He said the force was doing well considering £6.8m of cuts this year, but he said he was not sure they would be able to "sustain improvements" if there were more.

"Wiltshire Police is now doing more with less money than just about every other police force in the country.

"That's to the credit of every single police officer. But there is only so much we can do with the resources and funding," he said.

Wiltshire Police acknowledge there is still "more to be done"

Mr Wilkinson told the BBC that there had been changes - for example, maximising the time officers have for community engagement, ensuring people can easily find out how to contact a neighbourhood officer on the website, and achieving better prosecution rates and response times.

He said at one time responses to calls were the worst in the country, but the force was now ranked 16th out of 43.

He added that victim satisfaction is a significant issue to consider - only 51% of victims across England and Wales were satisfied with how their incident was handled, down from 70% in 2015.

Mr Wilkinson handles a lot of the complaints. He said: "We must respect every victim and treat them as if what they have been subject to is incredibly important, even if it might only have been important to them. It's responding and treating everybody with respect."

The survey also found that 50% of respondents agree Wiltshire Police deal effectively with local concerns, compared to a national average of 40%.

Chief Supt Doug Downing said: "I welcome the fact that our communities continue to place great trust in Wiltshire Police.

"There is always more to be done, and we are determined to build on this positive momentum to strengthen that bond of trust."