I am satisfied with most aspects of Sussex Police’s overall performance. However, there are some areas that the force needs to improve to provide a consistently good service.
I have expressed my concern that recent changes to local policing may be cutting too hard and too deep into neighbourhood policing. While the force’s partnership arrangements are still strong, at the time of our inspection we found that police officers were too often being taken from preventative policing duties to respond to reactive policing needs.
I am assured that since our inspection the force has taken steps to ensure that it is not eroding neighbourhood policing.
I also have some concerns about how the force approaches the protection of vulnerable victims, in particular, its response to domestic abuse. The force has recently implemented a new system for handling domestic abuse incidents that entails carrying out some risk assessments over the phone. The force needs to improve this, to ensure the proper safeguarding measures are put in place in order to give these victims the support that they need. Other risk assessments are generally completed promptly and to a good standard.
The force’s initial response to investigating crimes is good but the quality of some investigations can be inconsistent. The force needs to improve how it supervises the investigations of less serious crimes, to ensure victims get the service they deserve.
The force is working well to protect the people of Sussex from threats of serious and organised crime. It has a good understanding of the threats posed to people in Sussex, although this could be improved by including information from partner organisations. The force should do more to deter those at risk of being drawn into organised criminality.
Since our inspection in 2014, the force has made concerted efforts to improve the accuracy with which it records crimes and has made progress in placing the victim at the forefront of crime-recording decisions. The force needs to do further work to reduce inaccuracies in its initial crime-recording decisions, and to improve the supervision of crime recording.
Sussex Police has a good understanding of the broad spectrum of demand it faces when fighting crime and this has informed the development of its operating model. The force has made plans based on prudent assumptions about its future income and costs. However, it needs to improve its understanding of the skills and knowledge of its workforce.
Sussex Police has improved its understanding of inefficiencies and unnecessary demands on police time. This has led it to introduce a resolution centre that assesses whether or not to send police officers to calls for service and oversees the consistency of investigations.
The force works well with its neighbour, Surrey Police, to reduce its costs and, through increasing the ability to use one another’s technology, and share systems and infrastructure, it has achieved greater economies of scale. The force has enhanced its efficiency through increased use of technology, including mobile devices, online crime reporting, social media and community messaging systems.
The force is good at seeking feedback on the quality of service it provides, and demonstrates an understanding of the importance of trying to access groups who might have limited trust in the police. Doing so allows the force to improve and adapt its service, so it can raise public confidence across Sussex.
The force is well prepared to prevent corruption within its workforce, having both good identification techniques as well as robust management of vetting. The workforce hold the force’s well-being services in very high regard.
In summary, I am satisfied that in many areas the force continues to provide a good service to the people of Sussex, but there are some aspects of its performance where I would like to see improvement.
Context
Sussex Police provides policing services to the areas of East, West and Mid Sussex. Sussex is generally affluent, although there are some areas of deprivation. The force area is home to around 1.7 million people, who mainly live along the south coast, in the city of Brighton and the towns of Bognor Regis, Hastings, Hove, and Horsham.
The resident population is increased by university students and the very large numbers who visit, socialise in, or travel through the area each year. The transport infrastructure includes 131 miles of motorway and trunk roads, major rail stations, a major airport and major sea ports.
The proportion of areas in Sussex that are predicted (on the basis of detailed economic and demographic analysis) to present a very high challenge to the police is lower than the national average. The most challenging areas are generally characterised by a high concentration of people living, working, socialising, or travelling in the area.
Features that both cause and/or indicate a concentration of people include the number of commercial premises, including licensed premises and fast-food premises, public transport, and social deprivation. In some areas, these features are combined.
Working arrangements
Sussex Police has collaborated in several functions with Surrey Police, through its Policing Together programme. This includes the operations command, specialist crime and IT support. There are plans to extend these opportunities through more sharing of backroom services and the development of a joint IT infrastructure serving both forces.
The Emergency Services Collaboration Programme seeks to manage demand on all three main blue-light responders more effectively, through relationships with East Sussex, West Sussex and Surrey Fire and Rescue Services and South East Coast Ambulance services.
There are plans to share technology, finance and human resource functions, in preparation for the establishment of the East Sussex Fire and Rescue headquarters and contact functions at Sussex Police headquarters in Lewes.
Looking ahead to 2017
In the year ahead, I will be interested to see how Sussex Police responds to this assessment and to the cause of concern and areas for improvement that HMIC identified last year.
I will be particularly interested to see:
- how the force improves its approach to neighbourhood policing;
- how the force improves its response to domestic abuse;
- how the force improves the quality and supervision of its investigations; and
- how the force improves its understanding of the skills and knowledge of its workforce, and matches its workforce better to current and likely future demands.
