West Midlands Police's custody services require further improvement

West Midlands Police has shown some progress in its custody services, but there are still several areas of concern, a new report has found.

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Report on an inspection visit to police custody suites in West Midlands Police

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found that West Midlands Police has made some improvements since their last inspection in 2017.

For example, governance structures were better, and inspectors found that senior leaders were actively involved in seeking to improve custody provision. There was some effective collaboration with other agencies to support children and vulnerable people to keep them away from the criminal justice system. Inspectors also found that healthcare for detainees was good.

However, the inspectorate found several issues and highlighted four main causes of concern about the force’s custody services. The causes of concern are:

  • the leadership of custody isn’t making sure safe and respectful custody services are consistently provided. There has been limited improvement since the previous inspection;
  • the force’s management of detainee risk isn’t good enough. The force isn’t always assuring detainees’ safety and isn’t following authorised professional practice guidance in all areas;
  • there are several areas where the force isn’t consistently meeting the requirements of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and its codes of practice; and
  • the governance and oversight of the use of force in custody isn’t good enough. There isn’t enough accurate information or quality assurance of incidents to support effective scrutiny.

His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Wendy Williams said:

“West Midlands Police has shown some improvement in its custody services since our last inspection.

“Frontline officers have a good understanding of vulnerability and consider this when deciding whether an arrest is appropriate, and custody staff treat detainees with respect and do their best to meet individual needs.

“However, progress has been limited and there are still several areas of concern, including West Midlands Police’s oversight of the use of force in custody and the lack of consistency in the custody services it provides.

“We will be working closely with West Midlands Police and monitoring its progress against our new recommendations.”

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Report on an inspection visit to police custody suites in West Midlands Police

Notes

  1. For further information, please contact the HMICFRS Press Office on 0300 071 6781 or HMICPressOffice@hmicfrs.gov.uk.