What we do

Making communities safer

For over 160 years, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary independently inspected and reported on the efficiency and effectiveness of police forces – in the public interest.

We inspect police forces across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We also inspect law enforcement arrangements in British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, on invitation from the relevant government, as well as non-territorial services, specialist agencies and international police forces.

In summer 2017, HMIC took on responsibility for the inspection of England’s fire and rescue services, inspecting and reporting on their efficiency and effectiveness. To reflect this new role, our name changed to HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS). We may also be invited to provide assistance to other public authorities, overseas territories and crown dependencies.

We ask the questions that we believe the public wish to have answered, and publish our findings, conclusions and recommendations. We use our expertise to interpret the evidence and make recommendations for improvement.

We provide authoritative information to allow the public to compare the performance of their police force and fire and rescue service against others. We also routinely monitor the performance of police forces in England and Wales.

Inspecting policing and fire & rescue services in the public interest

The public want the police and fire and rescue services (FRSs) to succeed in their duties to keep people safe and secure. It is in the public interest that the quality of policing in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and fire and rescue in England keeps improving.

At HMICFRS, we inspect, monitor and report on the efficiency and effectiveness of the police and FRSs with the aim of encouraging improvement.

By providing accessible information on the performance of forces and FRSs, we allow their public, and peers, to see how they are doing. This will place pressure on those forces and FRSs requiring improvement in aspects of policing and fire and rescue to raise their game.

We will always try to see policing and fire and rescue through the public’s eyes. We will use consumer ‘watchdog’ tactics, such as mystery shopping, and ask the public, in surveys, what they think about policing and fire and rescue and where they want to see improvements.

Our reports are clear, jargon-free, accessible, measured, objective, statistically reliable and authoritative.

We also continue to provide high-quality professional advice to the police and FRSs, using experienced officers and other subject-matter experts to identify the best practice from which all forces and FRSs can learn to improve their performance. We encourage operational excellence and a good deal for the public in terms of value for money.

We carry out many police force and fire and rescue service inspections and visits on a regular and rolling basis, and publish our findings on this website. Our reports on broad policing and fire and rescue themes and specific subjects – from terrorism and serious organised crime to custody arrangements – can all be found in the publications section.

Much of our police work relates to the mainstream police forces in England and Wales, together with the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the British Transport Police. However, we also inspect other law enforcement bodies, including the National Crime Agency and HM Revenue and Customs. Our fire and rescue inspections focus on the effectiveness, efficiency and people of the 44 FRSs in England.

HMICFRS and the Public Sector Equality Duty

Our purpose is to make equality and diversity considerations a routine part of everything we do, whether it is in relation to our role of inspecting police forces and FRSs in the public interest, interactions and treatment of our staff, or holding forces to account.

As a listed body, HMICFRS will, within all our inspections, give consideration to inequality and, where identified, make recommendations to improve experiences in support of the Public Sector Equality Duty. These recommendations can be found in our publications.

For further information about the Public Sector Equality Duty, please see the Equality and Human Rights Commission website.