North Yorkshire Police told to make urgent improvements by inspectors

The force’s strategic planning and its use of resources are “inadequate”, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has concluded following an inspection in October.

In a new report, inspectors also stated that improvements must be made to the way it conducts investigations, protects vulnerable people, responds to the public and supports its workforce. Investigators highlighted the force’s slow response to 999 calls, as just over 40 per cent were being answered within 10 seconds. The Government said forces should aim for at least 90 per cent.

North Yorkshire Police’s approach to preventing crime and anti-social behaviour and its management of offenders and suspects were “adequate”.

But the force was also praised for treating the public with fairness and respect.

His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Roy Wilsher said: “I have concerns about the performance of North Yorkshire Police in keeping people safe and reducing crime.

“In particular, I have serious concerns about its strategic planning and organisational management.

“Senior leaders in the force need to ensure they have effective oversight of its enabling services, such as IT and HR functions. Failures in these areas impact the service the force provides.

“North Yorkshire Police also needs to improve the speed with which it answers and responds to emergency calls.

“However, we did find that the force works well with partner organisations to safeguard vulnerable people.

“We found good examples of the force working with other organisations to divert young people away from offending and to reduce the vulnerability of people who may become victims of crime.”

Chief Constable Lisa Winward said: “We have been working at a pace to address the issues that they have raised so we can focus on our core responsibilities to the public.”

She said North Yorkshire Police has improved its 999 response time since the inspection, as around 72 per cent of calls are now answered within 10 seconds and officers reach the scene of incidents in just over 14 minutes on average.

She also said that the force was working to cut its “digital forensics backlog” in half by June, and ensure mobile phones can be analysed for evidence “within much shorter timescales”.

“These are particular examples but right across the force we are working to implement a greater level of leadership oversight and performance management on our processes and systems,” she said.

“We are implementing an effective improvement plan that I believe will significantly improve our performance.”

She added: “As the safest place in the country, I can assure the communities of North Yorkshire and the city of York that we remain absolutely committed to keeping you safe, and feeling safe.”