West Mercia Police release stop and search figures
West Mercia Police has today released its recent stop and search figures after Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary praised the force for its use of the power.
The Inspectorate issued its findings earlier this week following a recent inspection of the use of stop and search powers in all 43 Home Office funded forces in England and Wales.
The force was not mentioned specifically in HMIC’s national report, but the Inspectorate’s feedback directly to the force was extremely positive said West Mercia Police.
HMIC’s findings praise West Mercia Police for having ‘strong chief officer leadership and commitment on stop and search at a strategic level’ while also highlighting that ‘the culture of the force promotes fair and proactive policing, targeting the right people in the right area at the right time.’
The report also highlights how West Mercia Police is ‘focused on crime reduction and public confidence.’ The report goes on to say ‘officers are encouraged to use stop and search ethically and effectively’ and that ‘targets for individual officers are not set’, leaving the use of the power solely at an officer’s discretion based on the grounds of each case.
Shropshire Figures
Between January to June 2013 1,728 people were stopped and searched in Shropshire a 104% increase on the same period last year. Out of those, 277 of searches had a positive outcome. In total 144 people were arrested as a result of a stop and search.
1,618 white persons were stopped and searched in Shropshire. The number of ethnic persons stopped and searched stood at 106.
The number of white persons stopped and searched per 1,000 in Shropshire was 5.40. 16.95 ethnic persons were stopped and searched per 1,000.
The total population in the Shropshire area is 299,874 white and 6,255 ethnic.
Telford & Wrekin Figures
Between January to June 2013 1,312 people were stopped and searched in Shropshire a 29% increase on the same period last year. Out of those, 192 of searches had a positive outcome. In total 97 people were arrested as a result of a stop and search.
1,082 white people were stopped and searched in Telford. The number of ethnic persons stopped and searched stood at 227.
The number of white persons stopped and searched per 1,000 in Telford & Wrekin was 7.01. 18.57 ethnic persons were stopped and searched per 1,000.
The total population in the Telford & Wrekin area is 154,415 white and 12,226 ethnic.
A discrepancy in stop search totals were due to some people’s ethnicity recorded as unknown.
Commended
Assistant Chief Constable Gareth Morgan, who was commended directly in the report for ‘reviewing and reinvigorating’ the force’s approach to stop and search said:
“While HMIC’s national report raises serious questions for the police as a whole in their use of stop and search powers, the findings which relate directly to West Mercia Police were highly complimentary.
“The praise acknowledges the major changes we have made to increase the efficiency and accuracy of our stop searches, by switching from a paper based recording of stop search to electronic recording via an officer’s radio.
“HMIC also recognise how this change has ‘made a significant improvement to the use of stop search information as valuable intelligence’ as we are now able to attach a stop search record to a person’s police record and geographically map where that stop search took place. This particular approach is unique in England and Wales at this time.
“Following a pilot period at the end of last year, this innovative method is now fully operational across the whole of West Mercia and we are now in a position where we can release our most recent figures, which fully reflect the changes we have made to stop and search.”
