Cambridgeshire Police not attending quickly enough inspectors say

Inspectors said the public could lose confidence in Cambridgeshire Police if it did not improve response times

A police force was not "routinely attending incidents quickly enough", inspectors found.

Cambridgeshire Police was assessed by watchdog Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

It found the force was not always identifying repeat victims and victims were not consistently told of delays.

Cambridgeshre Police said the report highlighted good work by the force but also areas to improve.

Roy Wilsher, HM Inspector of Constabulary, congratulated the force for "keeping the public safe".

HMICFRS rated Cambridgeshire Police good in four areas, adequate in three and requires improvement in two - responding to the public and investigating crime.

Inspectors found response and attendance were within the target time in only 41 out of 79 incidents.

"Failure to attend incidents in time can cause victims to lose confidence in the force," the report said.

The report also said callers to the non-emergency 101 number often abandoned the call when they were transferred to another line, with evidence callers would then phone 999.

'Force can improve'

Checks were made to see if a caller was a repeat victim in only 57 out of 81 cases, the report said, which meant the force was "missing out on opportunities to understand and reduce repeat victimisation".

Inspectors found there was a "number of vacant detective roles" at Cambridgeshire Police, which was affecting its ability in investigate crimes.

"The force doesn't supervise investigations effectively and doesn't consistently set initial investigation plans," the report said.

Cambridgeshire Police was praised for crime recording, protecting vulnerable people, using its resources and developing its workforce

Mr Wilsher said he was "pleased with some aspects of the performance" of Cambridgeshire Police.

"I saw examples of good outcomes secured for victims of crime," he said.

But he added: "There are some areas in which it needs to improve."

Chief Constable Cambridgeshire Police Nick Dean said he welcomed the inspection which highlighted "the good work the constabulary has done to ensure we are keeping our communities safe".

He added: "There are some areas in which the force can improve on going forward.

"We continue to strive to be the best we can and to keep Cambridgeshire safe."

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