Bedfordshire Police 'concerns' highlighted by watchdog

Bedfordshire Police had "fragile but improving" staffing levels, an HMIC report said

Concerns over the service provided by Bedfordshire Police have been raised by the constabulary watchdog.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) said the force had "fragile" staffing levels and needed to "implement improvement plans rapidly".

Inspectors visited the force after criticising its response to government spending cuts last year.

Police and Crime Commissioner Olly Martins said the report was "out of date".

In the HMIC's Policing in Austerity: Meeting the Challenge report last year, Bedfordshire Police was judged to be "requiring improvement".

Inspectors, who said the force would be "monitored closely", returned in October and found it was not performing well compared to similar forces.

It highlighted problems in the force control room, although said these should be improved by a recent increase in staff.

'Remain effective'

The report described staffing levels as "fragile but improving" and said although there had been recruitment, it was not clear what investment the force had made in preventive work to reduce demand.

"There is a concern that it may not be tackling longer-term issues," the report said.

Inspectors said it needed to implement its plans for improving policing in "an affordable way more quickly" while ensuring its service "remains effective".

However, they said the force was "moving in the right direction and the pace of change is increasing".

Mr Martins said: "All that publishing out-of-date snapshots of a force, such as today's report does, is potentially undermine police force morale and mislead the public.

"When HMIC have already made their subsequent inspection it frankly seems incompetent, to say the least, to still publish a report that's seven months out of date."

HMIC said it had made a further assessment in March and would be returning in May and July.