Wiltshire Police's use of force in custody 'concerning'

Inspectors visited the custody suites in Melksham, pictured, and Swindon in November

Inspectors have expressed concern about the use of force in police custody suites.

A report published following a visit to suites run by Wiltshire Police said it was one of two "areas of concern".

The report found progress had been made in some areas since the previous visit, but there was still work to be done.

It was published after inspectors visited the custody suites in Swindon and Melksham in November. Wiltshire Police said it welcomed the findings.

The inspection was carried out by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) and the Care Quality Commission.

The inspectors concluded that the oversight of the use of force by Wiltshire Police "isn't good enough".

"It hasn't improved since our last inspection and is now a cause of concern," their report said.

"Some information is inaccurate, incidents aren't always properly recorded on custody records, or recorded at all, and not all staff involved in an incident complete the required use-of-force forms."

'More scrutiny needed'

The force was recommended to scrutinise incidents when force was used to be certain it was "necessary, justified and proportionate".

Inspectors also raised health concerns about the people brought into the suites because of staff shortages.

Wiltshire Police has recently begun using Mitie Care & Custody as its healthcare provider, and at the time of the inspection, the new contract had not been fully implemented so staff numbers remained low.

"This meant there weren't enough healthcare practitioners to see detainees promptly, or sometimes at all."

Routine monitoring of detainees did not always take place, and medicine was not always given at the right time, inspectors said.

But "good monitoring arrangements" had been in place and new staff had been recruited, they also said.

'Updating our systems'

Wiltshire Police was recommended to work with Mitie Care & Custody to make sure the new contract was "properly implemented" so any detainees with health issues while in custody "are seen promptly and their needs met".

Staff were praised by inspectors for how they handled detainee release, including giving a "good level of care" and making sure detainees got home safely, particularly vulnerable adults and children.

The custody suites at Melksham and Swindon were also found to be "clean and well-maintained".

Supt Guy Elkins, lead for Crime Standards and Justice said: "I welcome the findings of today's HMICFRS report following a visit by inspectors in November.

"The report contains a number of important recommendations around how we can improve the service we provide in our custody suites.

"We have already started to implement a number of changes to our working practices and we are updating our systems in order to address these concerns."

He said the police were using a new software platform to enable greater scrutiny and oversight of force used, which was a priority for Wiltshire Police.

"We have also brought in new oversight measures, with complaints relating to Use of Force now reviewed as part of our monthly custody performance meetings - where we can readily identify trends and learning opportunities," he added.

He said the inappropriate use of force would either be dealt with as a training matter or referred to a professional standards committee.