North Wales Police 'inadequate' at tackling organised crime says report
Wendy Williams CBE, HM Inspector of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, spoke to ITV News about why North Wales Police has been deemed inadequate when dealing with Serious and Organised Crime.
An inspection of police forces in North Wales and the North-West of England has rated North Wales Police as "inadequate" at dealing with Serious and Organised Crime.
His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services identified a number of areas of concern including a lack of resources to tackle the issue effectively.
It made a number of recommendations, including telling North Wales Police to ensure its workforce understood that serious organised crime is a priority.
Wendy Williams CBE, HM Inspector of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services said: "The force needs to bridge that gap between that very clear senior-level intention and the reality of the practice on the ground.
"So the local neighbourhood teams, all of them need to recognize the important role that they can play in gathering intelligence and information so as to inform the work of their specialist teams."The Inspectorate found that the force had a corporate plan that identified Serious Organised Crime as a priority threat. But found some personnel didn’t fully understand this.
Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman said she was "disappointed" with the grading but fully accepted the inspectorate's findings and is "committed to addressing its recommendations".
She said: "Whilst disappointed with the grading, I am pleased to say we have already made significant changes in improving the way we tackle serious and organised crime within our communities".
The inspectorate said only two out of three locally based proactive units were fully operational – limiting the force's capacity. It also found lead responsible officers were managing other significant demands, which limited their effectiveness in tackling Serious Organised Crime.
In 2016 the force was told to improve the way in which it recorded learning in relation to the issue - the inspectorate found this area still hadn't been addressed.
Chief Constable Blakeman said: "I am pleased that we have already been able to increase the number of officers in proactive roles and work is underway to improve our internal communication to maximise learning and development regarding SOC within our workforce.
"We will continue our proactive operations, supported by coordinated activity with our partners, to ensure we support vulnerable people exploited because of organised criminality, and make North Wales a hostile environment for those who cause the most harm in our communities. She added: "We are committed to implementing an action plan to address the organisational changes required to improve the areas identified by the Inspectorate.”
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