Overall summary
Our judgments
Our inspection assessed how good Leicestershire Police is in nine areas of policing. We make graded judgments in eight of these nine as follows:
We also inspected how effective a service Leicestershire Police gives to victims of crime. We don’t make a graded judgment for this area.
We set out our detailed findings about things the force is doing well and where the force should improve in the rest of this report.
We also assess the force’s performance in a range of other areas and we report on these separately. We make graded judgments for some of these areas.
PEEL 2023–2025
In 2014, we introduced our police efficiency, effectiveness and legitimacy (PEEL) inspections, which assess the performance of all 43 police forces in England and Wales. Since then, we have been continuously adapting our approach.
We have moved to a more intelligence-led, continual assessment approach, rather than the annual PEEL inspections we used in previous years. Forces are assessed against the characteristics of good performance, set out in the PEEL Assessment Framework 2023–2025, and we more clearly link our judgments to causes of concern and areas for improvement.
It isn’t possible to make direct comparisons between the grades awarded in this PEEL inspection and those from the previous cycle of PEEL inspections. This is because we have increased our focus on making sure forces are achieving appropriate outcomes for the public, and in some cases we have changed the aspects of policing we inspect.
Terminology in this report
Our reports contain references to, among other things, ‘national’ definitions, priorities, policies, systems, responsibilities and processes.
In some instances, ‘national’ means applying to England or Wales, or England and Wales. In others, it means applying to England, Wales and Scotland, or the whole of the United Kingdom.
HM Inspector’s summary
I am pleased with the performance of Leicestershire Police in keeping people safe, reducing crime and giving victims an effective service. But to provide a consistently good service, it needs to improve in some areas.
The force is committed to working with the diverse communities it serves. The East Leicester disorders in the autumn of 2022 reinforced the importance of this communication. The incidents placed significant demands on the force. But they led to a re-energised approach from Leicestershire Police to connecting with communities at a neighbourhood policing level.
I am pleased that the force places a priority on preventing crime. We found the prevention directorate to be an area of strength and innovation for the force. With continued investment the directorate should help to solve local problems and to keep people safe. This can be achieved jointly with partner organisations such as probation and social care services, as well as charities, academic institutions and communities.
But the force needs to improve its service for the public in some key areas, such as responding to the public and investigating crime.
The force has increased the number of call handlers it employs. This has led to improvements in the time it takes to answer emergency and non-emergency calls. But it doesn’t always attend calls for service in line with its own targets. The force has tried several ways to improve this situation, but it needs to show sustained improvements. If it doesn’t do this, victims could lose confidence in Leicestershire Police.
I recognise that the force has tried to improve the outcomes for victims and the quality of the investigations it carries out. I have seen the procedural and process changes implemented to effect this change. But the force needs to continue to improve in this area, to secure justice for victims and keep its communities safe.
Leicestershire Police, in common with many other forces, is facing financial challenges. These challenges have resulted in a reduction in the number of civilian staff in the force. These reductions are likely to continue but I am reassured by the plans that the force has in place to meet its financial pressures. I will monitor how it manages this process while it strives to improve its service to the communities of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
I congratulate the officers and staff of Leicestershire Police for their efforts to keep the public safe and I will continue to monitor progress in the areas where the force needs to improve.
Roy Wilsher
HM Inspector of Constabulary
Leadership
Using the College of Policing leadership standards as a framework, in this section we set out the most important findings relating to the force’s leadership at all levels.
The chief officer team is well respected and connected to the workforce. They are visible to the organisation and responsive to the feedback they receive. But we found that visibility for senior leads below the chief officer team was less consistent.
The force is working hard to support its leaders. The leadership programme is provided by the force’s Team Leicestershire Academy. The academy works closely with the College of Policing to provide a comprehensive leadership framework.
Governance processes are clear and aligned to force priorities, and provide effective scrutiny of performance. When we carried out this inspection in 2024, much of the force’s scrutiny focused on whether actions have been completed and improvements in this area could be seen. The force has now begun greater scrutiny of how well these actions are completed. This will allow the force to improve its service to communities. The force should continue to develop qualitative performance management within its governance structure.
Leicestershire Police, in common with many forces, has an inexperienced workforce. We repeatedly found that first-line supervisors were struggling to effectively manage the demands placed on them. The force should examine how it can further support first-line supervisors.
Chief officers and senior leads have led the creation of a positive and inclusive organisational culture. This culture promotes and supports equality and diversity, and values difference. The force is very successful in attracting and supporting new recruits from underrepresented groups. But this level of support isn’t yet at the same level for existing personnel. The force tells us that it intends to improve in this area.
The force has made changes to its policing model and these are starting to show positive results. But further work is needed to fully realise the benefits of the changes that have been made.
The force is facing significant financial pressures. But it has plans in place to make the required savings while maintaining high levels of service to the public.
More detail on Leicestershire Police’s leadership is included in the main body of the report.
Providing a service to the victims of crime
Victim service assessment
This section describes our assessment of the service Leicestershire Police provides to victims. This is from the point of reporting a crime and throughout the investigation. As part of this assessment, we reviewed 100 case files.
When the police close a case of a reported crime, they assign it an ‘outcome type’. This describes the reason for closing it.
We selected 100 cases to review, including at least 20 that the force had closed with the following outcome type:
Where a community resolution has been applied.
Although our victim service assessment is ungraded, it influences graded judgments in the other areas we have inspected.
The force needs to improve the time it takes to answer emergency and non‑emergency calls
The force needs to make some improvements in the time it takes to answer emergency calls. It also needs to reduce the number of non-emergency calls where the caller hangs up before a handler answers it. In their calls, call handlers nearly always use a structured process that assesses threat, harm, risk and vulnerability, but don’t always record a correct and meaningful reflection of the circumstances of the call. Call handlers don’t always identify repeat victims, although this is improving. This means that they aren’t always fully aware of the victim’s circumstances when considering what response the force should give. Call handlers are polite and give victims advice on crime prevention but not always on how to preserve evidence.
The force doesn’t always respond promptly to calls for service
On most occasions, the force responds to calls for service appropriately. But it doesn’t always respond within the timescales it has set. It doesn’t always inform victims of delays, meaning that victims’ expectations aren’t always met. This may cause victims to lose confidence and to disengage with the process.
The force doesn’t always carry out effective investigations
In most cases, the force investigates crimes in a timely way. But it doesn’t always complete relevant and proportionate lines of enquiry. The force doesn’t always supervise investigations well, but it keeps victims regularly updated. Victims are more likely to have confidence in a police investigation when they receive regular updates.
A thorough investigation increases the likelihood of personnel identifying and arresting the perpetrators. Achieving this provides a positive result for the victim. In most cases, the force took victim personal statements, which gave victims the opportunity to describe how that crime had affected their lives.
When victims withdraw support for an investigation, the force considers progressing the case without the victim’s support. This can be an important way of safeguarding the victim and preventing further offences from being committed. The force always records whether it considers using orders designed to protect victims, such as a Domestic Violence Protection Notice or Domestic Violence Protection Order.
The Code of Practice for Victims of Crime requires forces to carry out a needs assessment at an early stage to determine whether victims need additional support. The force doesn’t always carry out these assessments and record requests for additional support.
The force mostly assigns the right outcome type to an investigation and considers victims’ wishes, but it doesn’t always hold auditable records of them
The force doesn’t always close crimes with the appropriate outcome type. It doesn’t record a rationale for using a certain outcome and this isn’t effectively supervised. It does ask for victims’ views when deciding which outcome type to assign to a closed investigation. But when appropriate, the force isn’t always able to provide an auditable record of victims’ wishes. However, members of the force mostly inform victims of which outcome code they have assigned to the investigation.
Police powers and treating the public fairly and respectfully
Leicestershire Police is good at using police powers and treating people fairly and respectfully.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to police powers and treating people fairly and respectfully.
The force understands the importance of making sure its officers act without bias in interactions with its communities
We found a strong commitment from the chief officer team to make sure personnel treat the communities they serve fairly and respectfully. This starts with the Leicestershire policing pledge.
New recruits to the organisation receive two full days of diversity, equality and inclusion training. They are also supported to understand the communities they police through initiatives such as visits to religious centres. New recruits receive specific training on searching people from communities where their clothes have a religious or cultural significance.
By December 2024, the force aims for all its workforce to have received a full day’s diversity, equality and inclusion training. This focuses on improving relationships and interactions with the communities of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. As of June 2024, over 2,200 officers and staff had received this training.
The force uses stop and search powers fairly and respectfully
During our inspection, we reviewed a sample of 116 stop and search records from 1 February 2023 to 31 January 2024. Based on this sample, we estimate that 92.2 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 4.8 percentage points) of all stop and searches by the force during this period had reasonable grounds recorded. This is broadly unchanged compared with the findings from our earlier review of records from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020 when we found 91.7 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 3.6 percentage points) of stop and searches had reasonable grounds recorded. Of the records we reviewed for stop and searches on people who self-identified as from an ethnic minority background, 39 of 42 had reasonable grounds recorded.
In the year ending 31 March 2023, Leicestershire Police carried out 6,615 stop and searches. This equates to 5.7 stop and searches per 1,000 population and is within the normal range for forces across England and Wales.
In the year ending 31 March 2023, based on population data from the 2021 Census, Black people were estimated to be 3.1 times as likely as White people to be stopped and searched by Leicestershire Police. This is lower than the 4.1 disproportionality rate for England and Wales. But it shows that Black individuals are still disproportionately more likely to be stopped and searched by Leicestershire Police.
Officers told us that they only occasionally use stop and search in a proactive way. The force may wish to consider how to increase the proactive use of stop and search. This may improve its capability to prevent and detect crime.
The force has a good understanding of when its officers are using force
Officers we spoke to had a good understanding of when they should submit use of force forms. This is important as it allows the force to reassure communities that it is using its powers proportionately and fairly. When an officer uses force prior to arriving at custody, they are sent a task by the custody sergeant to make sure they submit an appropriate form. If officers don’t submit forms as required, they will be directed to do so by their line managers.
Many officers we spoke to demonstrated a good understanding of their responsibility to justify their use of force, including compliant handcuffing. But some officers told us they regularly use compliant handcuffing when carrying out stop and searches. We are satisfied that this isn’t endemic across the force and that officer safety training doesn’t support routine handcuffing. But the force should reassure itself that officers understand how to appropriately use their powers in respect of handcuffing. Failure to do so could influence public confidence.
The force uses internal and external scrutiny of the use of force and stop and search powers to improve performance
Leicestershire Police understands the importance of public confidence in its use of coercive powers, such as stop and search and use of force. There are strong internal scrutiny processes in place to make sure officers use their powers correctly. These include supervisor reviews, dip sampling by senior officers and tactical scrutiny panels. This scrutiny includes the review of body-worn video (BWV).
The outcomes of these scrutiny processes feed into an overarching governance board chaired by the assistant chief constable. Representatives from professional standards and the officer safety training department are among the members of the scrutiny panels. In these meetings we saw how the force uses identified learning to give feedback, both positive and negative, to officers. And how any issues identified cause changes to how the force trains officers in the use of coercive powers.
The force has a well-established coercive powers group, with an independent chair, which provides external scrutiny. The force also recognised that there wasn’t enough external scrutiny of BWV to confirm legitimate use of coercive powers, so it has set up a new group specifically to review BWV. This group has broad membership from hard-to-reach communities, has a clearly defined function and has a pathway to supply feedback to the force. As this group is newly formed, the force will need to make sure it becomes fully adopted as part of their external scrutiny processes.
The force supplies data on its use of force on its internal website. This data is clear and in an easy-to-read format. Transparency around use of force can help improve public confidence. But Leicestershire Police only publishes stop and search data as an annual report, so current data isn’t available to the public. The force should aim to increase the frequency of availability of this data to provide transparency and reassurance to its communities.
Officers are confident in the appropriate use of BWV
Officers we spoke to showed good knowledge of when they should use BWV. This is reinforced during officer safety training when officers must practise turning on BWV during applicable scenarios. Use of BWV consistently allows it to be available for internal and external scrutiny. This can help improve public confidence in its use. The force has started to record when officers aren’t using BWV while using force or carrying out a stop and search. But it can’t say how often BWV isn’t used when it should be. The force should obtain this data to reassure itself and the public that it uses BWV appropriately.
Good
Preventing and deterring crime and antisocial behaviour, and reducing vulnerability
Leicestershire Police is good at prevention and deterrence.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to prevention and deterrence.
The force neighbourhood policing model is focused on prevention of crime and antisocial behaviour, and on vulnerability
The force has invested in a sustainable neighbourhood policing model. This is to make sure policing activity contributes to local priorities and protects vulnerable people, groups and locations.
We saw that neighbourhood policing activity is supported by an effective governance framework with a suitable range of internal performance meetings. Senior leaders had access to a wide range of data. They showed their ability to interpret the data to identify emerging themes and direct policing activity appropriately.
Dedicated neighbourhood officers and police community support officers (PCSOs) also have access to digital applications. These include Power BI and Genie, which provide a range of data and information. These applications help officers identify and prioritise activity to reduce crime and antisocial behaviour.
Neighbourhood teams promote positive relationships with strategic partners from the public, private and voluntary sector. They work together to solve problems affecting local communities through joint action group meetings.
We saw neighbourhood teams working alongside partners on a sustainable approach to tackling crime and antisocial behaviour, and to protecting vulnerable people, for example:
- The Phoenix programme: a multi-agency initiative to support and disrupt persistent serious violence offenders.
- Initiatives to reduce night-time violent crime through collaboration with Leicester City Council and the McDonald’s restaurant chain.
- Street outreach: a joint initiative financed by the Grip fund and evaluated by the University of Cambridge that involves trusted community members working in serious violence hot-spot areas as guardians to intervene and prevent escalation of violence.
- Project Listen: a multi-agency initiative to support people from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community.
- The REACH programme: an initiative funded by the Youth Endowment Fund and evaluated by Sheffield Hallam University that aims to reduce exclusions, and involvement in crime and violence, by placing youth workers in schools.
The force should improve how it monitors neighbourhood abstractions
During our inspection, neighbourhood officers and PCSOs said they were often diverted from their core role, without notice, to carry out other duties such as response policing. When neighbourhood teams are called away from their main duties, this is known as an abstraction.
The force does have an abstraction policy and monitors planned abstractions for events such as policing football matches. But at the time of our inspection, the force was unable to accurately say how often neighbourhood officers and PCSOs were abstracted to unplanned activity.
This inability to record unplanned abstractions means the force can’t be sure what effect these are having on meeting neighbourhood policing priorities, such as working with communities to prevent crime.
The force is working to improve its approach to antisocial behaviour
In the year ending 31 March 2023, the force recorded 7 antisocial behaviour incidents per 1,000 population. This is lower than expected compared to the average rate of antisocial behaviour incidents across all forces in England and Wales (17.1 per 1,000 population).
The force recognised that reports of antisocial behaviour weren’t always being recorded properly and that its approach to antisocial behaviour could be improved.
Leicestershire Police has run an antisocial behaviour initiative in the Charnwood area, and reviewed how it was recording and closing these incidents. This work has allowed the force to gain a better understanding of antisocial behaviour as more incidents are accurately recorded. The renewed focus has seen a rise in victim satisfaction in this area. Better recording of antisocial behaviour will help the force to target its prevention and deterrence activity. This will help to reduce its occurrence and effect on communities.
The force works hard to build positive and sustainable relationships with all its communities
We saw that officers and staff across the force recognise the importance of building positive relationships with all communities across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
Neighbourhood teams use community plans to get local communities involved and make sure their work with the public has structure and purpose. The teams also use an activity tracker to record how and when they are in contact with local people, so they can make sure they don’t miss hard-to-reach communities.
Neighbourhood teams take the views of the communities into account when setting policing priorities. We saw officers and PCSOs using a range of methods to make sure they reach as many people from the communities as possible, such as:
- social media platforms;
- ward surveys;
- in-person community events;
- a Key Individual Network: a network of community leaders and representatives who act as a point of contact; and
- Neighbourhood Link: an email messaging service, sharing news and updates on local policing matters.
We saw that some neighbourhood teams use an NPA incident phone to support a two-way flow of information between the police and local communities during times of heightened tension. This practice shows the effective use of technology to promote trust and confidence in local policing. This has been independently recognised by community leaders.
Leicestershire Police’s community cohesion team is an example of how the force develops relationships with communities which don’t often interact with the police. We saw an example of the team starting a relationship-building process following a serious violence incident in the Stoneygate area of Leicester. The team introduced members of the community to the local policing team, to strengthen and promote long‑term relationships.
The force has introduced a new local independent advisory group (LIAG) model which involves an LIAG panel for each of the nine neighbourhood policing areas. LIAGs have an important role to play in providing senior police officers with the opportunity to have an open dialogue with members of the community.
The force told us that over 100 panel members have been recruited. Recruitment for each LIAG has been carried out independently of the police through local media campaigns. This means that panel members reflect the local community and can provide senior police leaders with advice and information relevant to that neighbourhood policing area.
In addition, the chairperson for each LIAG sits on the strategic independent advisory group. This is a regular meeting co-chaired by the chief constable. The group discusses matters that influence the wider force and the communities of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
The force is committed to problem-solving and evidence-based policing
Senior leaders encourage, support and resource an evidence-based policing approach to problem-solving. Officers have access to a range of in-person training and digital reference material to support operational problem-solving.
There is widespread use of problem management plans (PMPs) across the force and methods of problem-solving extend beyond neighbourhood policing. One example of this is in the threat assessment unit (TAU), where the team uses PMPs to reduce the potential of domestic violence in high-risk relationships. PMPs are stored on the Niche computer system.
During our review of plans as part of this inspection, we found neighbourhood officers regularly used a problem-solving model called scanning, analysis, response and assessment (SARA). This was generally used to good effect to solve issues affecting local communities. One example of this is Operation Yatter, which addresses the antisocial use of off-road motorcycle and e-bikes. Another is the work taking place in the St Andrews area to tackle drug dealing.
There is effective governance of PMPs, led by the dedicated problem management team. Performance is scrutinised at a force and local level. When personnel close a PMP, these are subject to a formalised review to make sure that any learning is gathered and shared. The force has built good relationships with partners to jointly tackle community issues. But the force could do more to improve the consistency and quality of supervisory reviews of PMPs. Greater consistency of these will help improve the force’s effectiveness in making sustained improvements in communities.
We also found that neighbourhood teams use a second digital application called Sentinel. This is to co-ordinate activity in response to some incidents of antisocial behaviour. Sentinel allows partner information to be shared directly. However, in other aspects it is less functional than the main system, NICHE. This two‑system approach creates inconsistencies. Also, the problem management team isn’t checking and assessing some of the work recorded on Sentinel on preventing and deterring antisocial behaviour. This can lead to lost opportunities to resolve persistent community problems.
Good
Responding to the public
Leicestershire Police requires improvement at responding to the public.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force responds to the public.
The force is improving the timeliness in which it answers emergency calls
Members of the public can be reassured that if they dial 999 to ask for help from Leicestershire Police, the force will answer the call quickly.
Figure 1: Proportion of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds by forces in England and Wales in the year ending 30 June 2024

Source: 999 call answering times from BT
Note: Call answering time is the time taken for a call to be transferred from BT to a force, and the time taken by that force to answer the call.
In the year ending 30 June 2024, the force answered 89 percent of its 999 calls within 10 seconds. This was just below the expected standard of 90 percent of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds.
Data provided by the force for November 2023 to July 2024 shows sustained improvements in this area with the percentage of calls answered within 10 seconds being above 90 percent for each of the last 9 months.
The force needs to reduce the number of non-emergency calls that the caller abandons because they aren’t answered
The force told us that 16.8 percent of calls to its non-emergency 101 number were abandoned. As set out in the 2020 national contact management strategy principles and guidance, forces without a switchboard should aim to have an abandonment rate lower than 10 percent.
The force has put measures in place to improve in this area, including investment in increasing officer and staff numbers. It is starting to see improvements in reducing the abandonment rate. The force should aim to continue these improvements. We will continue to monitor the force’s positive progress to see if it sustains the improvements.
The force is using technology to improve how members of the public can contact it
Leicestershire Police has invested in technology to improve how members of the public can contact it.
The force uses an interactive voice response system to route non-emergency calls to specific departments. Automated messages also signpost callers to other methods of contact. These initiatives have contributed to the reduction in non-emergency call waiting times.
The force gives victims of crime a way to send an electronic message directly to the officer in the case using the national police website Single Online Home. And the force operates a dedicated digi-hub which monitors digital platforms where the public can report incidents, such as social media and messaging applications. This will further improve the force’s ability to respond to incidents promptly and effectively.
The force asks advice from experts to improve how it assists members of the public in mental health crisis
The force mental health triage team is made up of mental health practitioners and specially trained police officers. This team supplies advice, assistance and access to information and data. This support helps call handlers and dispatchers within the force control room, as well as officers and staff deployed to incidents.
The mental health triage team is supported by a further cohort of 300 supervisors who have received a two-day mental health first aid training course. The supervisors give advice when the mental health triage team is unavailable. This makes sure that the force is well equipped to assist vulnerable people who are in mental health crisis.
The force needs to improve its approach to crime scenes
We found that officers attending crime scenes didn’t aways maximise investigative opportunities and didn’t always secure evidence correctly.
Leicestershire Police recognise the importance of supporting responders to find and secure evidence in the initial stages of investigations. So, the force has introduced several initiatives, including:
- signal response investigators, who are officers trained in initial crime scene management for serious sexual offences;
- training for uniformed response officers, including in handling exhibits, initial crime scene management and maximising investigative opportunities; and
- a night detective car, staffed by detectives qualified to professionalising investigations programme (PIP) level 2, who supply advice and guidance at crime scenes overnight.
When officers secure evidence and material relevant to an offence at the earliest possible opportunity, it is more likely that the investigation will lead to a positive outcome for the victim.
Missing these opportunities means that other personnel must spend time rectifying the position. Sometimes investigations are compromised as a result, which has a negative effect on public confidence.
Dispatchers don’t always provide responders with relevant information and updates to make effective decisions when attending incidents
We found that dispatchers in the control room don’t always provide responders with relevant information and intelligence for the incidents they attend.
While officers can access information electronically by using a digital platform called STORM, they can’t do so when driving to an incident. When officers arrive at an incident it is important that they have as much information as possible to make informed decisions and act accordingly.
If dispatchers don’t provide them with relevant information, officers must do their own research. This can create unnecessary delays in attendance times or lead to officers arriving unprepared.
The force is improving at identifying vulnerable victims and repeat callers
In our 2021/22 PEEL inspection, we said that the force should do more to identify vulnerable callers and repeat victims. Results from our victim service assessment in this inspection showed that the force checked for a vulnerable victim in 73 out of 76 relevant cases. Where a vulnerable person was identified this was recorded in 38 out of 49 cases. 53 out of 64 relevant cases contained evidence of a check to identify repeat victims, to inform a risk assessment. When a repeat victim was identified, this information was used effectively in 25 out of 33 cases.
This is an improving picture since we last reported in 2022 but the force should continue with its efforts to improve performance in this area.
Requires improvement
Investigating crime
Leicestershire Police requires improvement at investigating crime.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force investigates crime.
Specialist investigation teams are well trained, well resourced and carry out thorough investigations
During our inspection we found the teams that deal with incidents of the highest risk are effective. The complex crime team, Signal team (which deals with serious sexual offences), domestic abuse investigation unit, and teams dealing with offences against children, all appeared to be well resourced. They have well-trained investigators and carry out high-quality investigations. We found these teams consistently applied investigation plans and supervisory oversight.
The force needs to continue supporting first-line supervisors to provide a consistent level of supervision of investigations
Some relatively inexperienced first-line supervisors told us that they don’t have time to properly carry out many of their responsibilities. This was a consistent theme in our inspection. It included the supervision of investigations which will inevitably affect the force’s ability to provide a consistent service to victims.
These observations are supported by the victim service assessment results which show:
- 56 out of 70 cases reviewed had a suitable investigation plan.
- 70 out of 95 cases reviewed had evidence of effective supervision.
- 74 out of 98 cases reviewed took all proper and proportionate investigative opportunities.
- 72 out of 100 investigations were judged as effective.
If teams don’t make suitable investigation plans, it is likely that they will miss some lines of enquiry. If combined with a lack of supervision, investigative plans aren’t assessed at the start of an investigation or reviewed at its conclusion. This means some investigations are finalised with investigative opportunities still outstanding.
The force has recognised investigative standards need to improve and has introduced several initiatives to try and address the issues. These have included the investment of a detective chief inspector into the Team Leicester Academy. This role involves co‑ordinating and leading investigative training for both detective and uniformed officers and staff.
The force has also introduced the role of crime manager and performance manager for each of the nine neighbourhood policing areas. Part of the function of these roles is to scrutinise investigations. They make sure that investigation plans are included and comprehensive, to identify where evidential opportunities may have been missed and to provide an extra layer of supervisory oversight.
The introduction of these roles is starting to improve investigative standards and outcomes for the public. We will continue to monitor how the measures to improve investigative standards develop.
The force needs to improve how it interprets performance data
The force uses Power BI to understand performance, capacity, capability and effectiveness of teams involved in the investigation of crime.
It provides a comprehensive range of data, which allows the force to have a good understanding of whether it does something or not. But it doesn’t help the force to know how well it does it.
We found that the force has invested in an assessment tool called quality assessment thematic testing (QATT). This provides a framework to continually assess the quality of the work being carried out.
The introduction of the system is in its very early stages. We will continue to monitor how it is implemented and how effective it is in promoting improvements in service.
The force is better at recording the views of victims and their reasons for withdrawing support for investigations
In our 2021/22 PEEL report, we highlighted that the force needed to improve how it records victims’ decisions and their reasons for withdrawing support for investigations.
In our victim support assessment, we found that the force recorded the reasons for a victim not supporting investigations in 31 out of 39 cases. And the reasons for withdrawing support was documented in 32 out of 36 cases.
This is an improvement from the last time we inspected and will allow the force to better understand the reasons why victims withdraw their support. This will then allow it to put in place measures which better support those victims.
In 14 out of 17 cases we examined, Leicestershire Police considered progressing or tried to progress the case without the support of the victim. We also found evidence that ancillary orders were considered where appropriate in 11 out of 11 relevant cases. Examples of ancillary orders include Domestic Violence Prevention Notices, Domestic Violence Prevention Orders and Stalking Protection Orders.
These measures help to make sure that personnel maximise victim safeguarding and bring offenders to justice where possible. This is the case even where a victim withdraws their support.
Requires improvement
Protecting vulnerable people
Leicestershire Police is adequate at protecting vulnerable people.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force protects vulnerable people.
The force has a good understanding of how to support vulnerable people
We found good evidence of plans across all areas of vulnerability feeding into a central governance vulnerability board. This board is chaired by the relevant assistant chief constable. Some of the plans we reviewed lack detail. But the higher up the hierarchy of governance the plans sat, the more evidence there was of actions being tracked and scrutinised.
We also observed instances where personnel learned from the data being reviewed at these meetings and changed practices as a result. One example of this was the expansion of the domestic abuse resolution team (DART). DART uses video technology to communicate with victims of domestic abuse. The force scrutinised a broad range of data and found improved outcomes for users in timeliness of victim contact, quality of investigation and victim satisfaction. This allowed the force to make a considered, evidence-based decision to expand and enhance this provision for victims.
The force acts on victim satisfaction feedback to improve services
The force has well-established practices to obtain victim feedback. These include structured interviews with victims carried out by the force’s telephone research bureau. It also carries out regular surveys to assess victims’ experiences of the service, in cases of domestic abuse. We found examples of the force using feedback to improve its service.
This included the use of an iPad in the sexual assault referral centre for victims to complete surveys anonymously before they leave. These surveys included free text boxes and questions specific to services provided. A variety of other response options were also available, such as thumbs up and thumbs down icons, with the aim of increasing accessibility for neurodivergent clients or those with learning difficulties. One example of improvements made through this feedback was that the medical room temperature was too cold. As a result, the force has improved the heating to provide a more comfortable environment for service users.
The force has an effective information-sharing process with partners to support the victims of high-risk domestic abuse
A multi-agency risk assessment conference (MARAC) is a meeting between police and partners including health and housing agencies, the probation service, independent domestic violence advocates and specialists from the voluntary sector. The purpose of the meetings is to share information about people at high risk of serious harm.
During our fieldwork we were able to observe some of these meetings. These meetings included all the indicators of an effective MARAC. The chair and participants were aware of their roles and had good knowledge of the cases they discussed. We observed good partnership working. This included clear pathways for sharing data and information, actions being set and evidence of follow-up from the meeting chair.
We also observed a clear commitment to making sure that the voice of the victim and the voice of the child were properly considered. This issue was previously identified as an area to be improved by SafeLives, an independent charity which works with organisations across the UK to improve the approach to domestic violence. In 2023, SafeLives published a review into MARAC arrangements in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
Leicestershire Police and its partners are working through the recommendations provided by SafeLives to improve the effectiveness of the MARAC process. We will continue to monitor the progress of this work.
The force should make sure it discloses information obtained through Clare’s Law within prescribed time limits
The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) is also known as Clare’s Law. It allows the police to disclose to a victim or potential victim of domestic abuse, information about their partner’s or ex-partner’s previous abusive or violent offending. When a disclosure application is successful, the police should disclose relevant information within 28 days.
We found that there were good structures and processes, and well-trained personnel, to manage DVDS applications. While there are still inconsistencies in meeting the 28‑day disclosure limits, the data provided by the force shows that between 1 January and 30 June 2024, personnel made 76 percent of DVDS disclosures within the 28-day limit. The force should continue to improve its consistency of timeliness of disclosures.
Adequate
Managing offenders and suspects
Leicestershire Police is good at managing offenders and suspects.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force manages offenders and suspects.
The force effectively pursues high-risk outstanding suspects and wanted persons to protect the public from harm
The force prioritises the arrest of high-risk offenders and suspects of high-risk domestic incidents.
A daily force management meeting reviews all high-risk cases. It gives responsibility for the arrests to local officers with support from specialist units as required. We saw that targeted interventions and arrests are happening promptly.
Leicestershire Police can draw on accurate data regarding outstanding and wanted suspects and this is scrutinised at a governance meeting chaired by a senior officer. The force has an automated process in place to identify officers who have more than five crimes with outstanding suspects attached to them. Intervention and support are provided to these officers when they reach this trigger.
Inspector reviews are completed on all cases where a suspect has been outstanding for over 90 days. The briefing system is a daily updated source of information and intelligence which officers review prior to starting their duties. This is also used to highlight wanted persons.
The force has run targeted activity initiatives focusing on apprehending outstanding and wanted suspects. These initiatives have a tangible effect on reducing the overall numbers. However, outside these initiatives the force is only having a limited effect on the overall numbers. And apart from in high-risk cases, concerted efforts to arrest outstanding and wanted suspects are inconsistent. The force should continue to focus on ways to try and reduce the number of outstanding and wanted suspects.
The force administers the use of bail effectively
The force uses a cohort of bail sergeants to make sure that officers comply with its own internal policy and the requirements set out in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. Officers we spoke to demonstrated a good understanding of the safeguarding benefits of placing suspects on bail, with a clear presumption of pre‑charge bail being used rather than released under investigation.
In the year ending 31 March 2024, the proportion of arrests using pre-charge bail was approximately 52 percent. This is an increase from approximately 40 percent in the year ending 31 March 2023.
The number of arrests using released under investigation has dropped accordingly. It was approximately 7 percent in the year ending 31 March 2024, down from approximately 18 percent in the year ending 31 March 2023.
These figures represent positive improvements for the force in its management of suspects.
The force has effective processes and practices in place to manage sexual and violent offenders
Leicestershire Police has systems in place to identify where there may be outstanding work within the management of sexual offenders and violent offenders (MOSOVO) team. The force uses the data produced at regular performance meetings to target activity against the highest risk. It also uses this data to make sure any outstanding work is minimal. This means that the force doesn’t miss early opportunities to identify risky sexual behaviours that may lead to further offending.
In the MOSOVO team, workloads are manageable, personnel are well trained and working practice is consistent with authorised professional practice
When we last inspected the force in 2022, we found that the force didn’t comply with authorised professional practice (APP) in respect of several aspects of its management of sexual offenders. The force has now put in place measures to make sure that it is fully compliant with APP.
We found that the number of offenders being managed by offender managers was at a level that allowed for effective and intrusive management of those offenders. Members of the team have been appropriately trained to carry out their roles. In terms of supervisory sign-offs of risk management processes carried out by offender managers, there are no reported backlogs. These risk assessments are also carried out in a way which is consistent with national best practice.
Personnel make visits to offenders in a timely fashion and are compliant with APP. The force has processes in place to make sure that members of the team highlight any intelligence relating to offenders to offender managers. This allows for more opportunities to intervene and prevent further offending. Members of the MOSOVO team work well with the force’s digital media investigators who jointly attend visits to offenders. This is to make sure that all digital evidence or intelligence is gathered promptly.
The force should continue to monitor the ratio of high-risk offenders being managed by officers
The MOSOVO team is a combination of officers and civilian investigators. Under their designated powers, the civilian investigators have no powers of search and seizure and don’t work evenings or weekends. Due to this, the force has decided that civilian investigators will, in most cases, only manage low and medium-risk offenders. This has meant that officers in the team manage the vast majority of high and very high-risk offenders.
This has resulted in officers having a workload where high-risk cases go over the recommended 20 percent of total offenders managed. We were told that the financial implications of changing the designated powers of civilian investigators were high. The force also assessed the risk as low, given the overall numbers of offenders being managed. However, the force should continue to monitor this situation.
The force is effective at dealing with online child abuse via the Artemis team
The performance of the Artemis team is scrutinised by a strong governance and performance meeting structure which reviews both demand and risk. Intelligence is refreshed at least every 28 days to help manage this risk. This makes sure that offenders who pose the most risk to children are arrested quickly. It also makes sure that personnel apply appropriate safeguards, such as bail with conditions or Sexual Harm Prevention Orders. This increases the number of opportunities to safeguard the public.
The Artemis team is co-located with the force’s digital media investigators and has an excellent working relationship. Digital media investigators attend every arrest or warrant execution to make sure a digital strategy is put in place. They also carry out a triage of devices and consider recovery of iCloud data.
Welfare and suicide prevention is in line with national guidelines and provides wraparound support for suspects with an agreed contact plan.
The Artemis team has a process in place to make sure that children are safeguarded
Whenever the team identifies a child in connection to an Artemis investigation, it completes a relevant notice. This notice triggers information-sharing with partner agencies such as child services via the force’s child referral team. It helps make sure there is a joint approach with partners in line with the statutory guidance ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023’. This practice allows measures to be put in place to make sure children are kept safe.
Good
Building, supporting and protecting the workforce
Leicestershire Police is good at building, supporting and protecting the workforce.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force builds, supports and protects the workforce.
The force provides a good range of support for officers and staff experiencing potentially traumatic incidents and those in high-risk roles
The force has well-being champions located across its policing areas. In conjunction with health, probation and local authority partners, the force has also trained over 300 supervisors as mental health first aiders. These personnel act as a point of contact to gain a better understanding of workforce well-being.
The force has a dedicated Your Well-being intranet site. This signposts to key contacts and available support/interventions. It also advertises force-run initiatives such as mental health webinars and menopause awareness sessions.
The force has identified departments and roles that carry high risks to well-being. It reviews this list regularly. Those in high-risk roles receive regular clinical assessment. Officers working in the safeguarding teams have access to an enhanced well-being plan. This includes a facilitated well-being forum and access to regular fitness sessions. Some positions require pre-screening prior to starting in the role, to identify an individual’s suitability.
The force has a clear process for post-incident support. This includes access to a trauma risk management (TRiM) referral process. This offer extends to all personnel. Most officers we spoke to valued TRiM and we were told of its use across the organisation including those in specialist and safeguarding roles.
Leicestershire Police supports members of its workforce who have been assaulted or subject to hate offences. It has a clear governance structure in place for this. The force records incidents, and it supports and monitors the well-being of officers who have been assaulted. Officers we spoke to were positive about the support provided by the force when they had been the victim of offences.
The force promotes an inclusive and supportive environment for new recruits to develop
The force recognises the importance of building a sense of belonging to increase officer and staff satisfaction, motivation and fulfilment. This can reduce absenteeism, increase productivity and morale, and increase personnel retention.
As part of our PEEL inspection, we carried out a workforce survey between 26 February and 25 March 2024, which 873 people responded to. We estimate this to be around 20.7 percent of the force’s total personnel as of 30 September 2023.
Of those surveyed, 77.8 percent of respondents felt a sense of belonging to Leicestershire Police. And 85.1 percent felt proud to be a member of Leicestershire Police.
The results regarding diversity, equality and inclusion showed that:
- 93.2 percent agreed that their line manager challenges discriminatory behaviour;
- 92.7 percent agreed that their line manager creates an ethical working environment;
- 89.5 percent agreed that their line manager creates an inclusive working environment; and
- 89.3 percent agreed that their line manager models high standards of behaviour.
Creating a positive culture can help the force meet its organisational priorities.
Team Leicestershire Academy provides all training for the force. The academy is central to efforts to retain new recruits. There are several initiatives in place to support this, including:
- dedicated tutors who receive regular training;
- joint work with De Montfort University to provide pastoral support; and
- retention events and workshops using the feedback from these sessions to improve service provision in the future.
The force has well-established networks supporting all personnel from underrepresented groups. These networks speak positively of the relationship they have with chief officers, with direct lines of communication and a tangible sense of being listened to. An example given was when the chief constable directly intervened following feedback from the Muslim Police Association. This intervention was to make sure officers weren’t adversely affected when taking mandatory fitness tests during Ramadan. Personnel networks participate in the training of new recruits and induction processes. They also provide enhanced levels of support for those who choose to become members.
The force supports officers and staff from underrepresented groups to develop and progress, but this support could be improved
The force is committed to attracting applications from underrepresented groups. Its positive action team is active in hard-to-reach communities, encouraging people to apply. The team then supports these people through the recruitment process. Support continues through initial training to help the retention of these personnel.
As of 31 March 2024, the force had its highest ever number of officers from a Black and ethnic minority background (204) and its highest ever number of female officers (839).
The force has supported individuals from underrepresented groups to attend national initiatives. Examples of these include the positive action leadership programme, the aspire leadership development programme and the national mentoring pilot. The force has also facilitated confidence in competence coaching sessions for personnel from these groups.
But officers and staff we spoke to highlighted that, while the positive action offer was strong for new recruits, they felt it was less developed for those already in the organisation or looking to transfer. The force recognises this and is considering how it progresses plans to better support, talent spot and develop those from underrepresented groups. We will be interested to see how this progresses.
The force is making improvements in how it manages individual performance but still has work to do
The force has made efforts to reinvigorate the professional development review (PDR) process so that officers and staff receive regular feedback and support from their line managers on their operational performance and career development. Rates of compliance are increasing and, as of 31 March 2024, 68 percent of the workforce had completed a PDR. We hope to see further improvements once Leicestershire Police has fully developed the new process.
PDR completion is now a central part of the officer promotion process and is also a key consideration for officers and staff wanting to move roles within their rank. The force is also developing its systems to make sure that PDR scoring is consistent across the organisation via a quality assurance process.
But many officers and staff we spoke to, who aren’t looking to change roles, didn’t think that the PDR was a worthwhile process.
The force should consider how it can improve the perceived value and benefits of the professional development review system so that it can better manage the performance and development of all personnel, including volunteers.
The move to an in-house occupational health department has been positive but inconsistencies in the clinical offer persist
In April 2023, the force left an East Midlands regional collaboration for occupational health provision and bought the service back in-house. This has resulted in increased timeliness of initial contact, appointment times and follow-up reports for service users. Occupational health services are now provided in a refurbished and fit-for-purpose facility at force headquarters.
But officers we spoke to reported inconsistencies in the levels of service they received from the force’s external employee assistance provider. While some had positive experiences, others received a poor level of service. The force should continue to monitor and scrutinise the effectiveness of the treatment provided.
Good
Leadership and force management
Leicestershire Police’s leadership and management is adequate.
Main findings
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to leadership and management.
The force has a robust governance process which helps make sure all areas of policing are effectively managed
The force has introduced a layer board governance structure which provides oversight and scrutiny of policing activity within the force. An appropriate assistant chief constable or assistant chief officer chairs these high-level strategic boards. The boards consist of:
- layer zero – prevention and partnerships;
- layer one – public contact;
- layer two – policing in neighbourhoods and response;
- layer three – investigation and safeguarding;
- layer four – criminal justice; and
- layer five – supporting frontline policing, people and technology.
These boards are supported by several operational delivery boards. The layer boards feed into the deputy chief constable chaired service delivery board and business delivery board. The chief constable chairs the force executive group.
The people we spoke to understood how they were scrutinised and supported by these layer boards. And senior officers were aware of performance issues manifesting in the force. These layer boards were supported by good data and information.
The force generally uses ICT well to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the force
The force’s digital optimisation and innovation team sits between the ICT and change teams. This team prioritises ICT development and helps the force identify where ICT development can be best used to improve the force’s performance.
The force was able to rapidly supply resources for an automatic redaction tool. This has significantly improved the time it takes for officers to revise crime files. Leicestershire Police has also started investing in robotic processing which will reduce the administrative burden on the force.
The force is making a significant investment in Telefonica Tech to improve the force approach to digital forensics. The technology will move downloaded digital data to the cloud. It is forecast to markedly improve the time it takes for officers to analyse digital devices. The technology wasn’t in place at the time of our inspection but it is something we will monitor in future inspections for potential promising practice.
The force’s financial plans, including its savings programme, are affordable and will help meet future demand
The force shows effective financial management. It makes the best use of the finance it has available and its financial plans are both ambitious and sustainable. For 2024/25, the total funding for Leicestershire Police is £243.1 million. It receives 40.6 percent of this funding through the council tax precept. The force maintains a good level of reserves which will help it to fund major projects and support it through financial uncertainty.
The force needs to make £5.4 million in savings in the financial year 2024/25. The force has a savings strategy which sets out how it expects to make savings in the mid-term financial plan. The bulk of this saving is likely to be achieved from a reduction in staff numbers.
The financial forecasts within the mid-term financial plan are based on realistic assumptions about future funding and expenditure. The force needs to make savings and has identified the areas where it will make them. Leicestershire Police is confident that it will achieve the savings required.
Chief officers are visible and connected, but visibility of other senior leads is less comprehensive
Officers and staff told us that the chief officer team was visible and connected to them through roadshows, video messaging, personal visits or via staff associations. The chief officer team has worked hard to provide this visibility and the workforce talk about it positively.
But we were repeatedly told that the level of visibility wasn’t the same for superintendent and chief inspector ranks. Officers told us that they rarely saw their senior leaders and didn’t feel any connection to them. The force should review how to improve this perception.
Adequate
About the data
Data in this report comes from a range of sources, including:
- the Home Office;
- the Office for National Statistics;
- our inspection fieldwork; and
- data we collected from the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales.
For any charts and tables included in this report, we have listed the data source underneath.
Methodology
Data that we collect from police forces
We collect data from police forces twice a year. We agreed the design and schedule of this data collection with forces and other interested parties, including the Home Office.
Our analysts check and evaluate the collected data. We contact the force if we have any initial queries. Following this, we carry out an in-depth data review and make further contact with the force if needed. This process gives forces several opportunities to quality assure and validate the information they shared to make sure it is accurate.
We then share our analysis with the force by uploading the data to online dashboards. As they can review own and other forces’ data in context, forces can identify any notable differences or other inconsistencies.
Forces considered in this report
This report presents the results from a PEEL inspection of one of the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales. British Transport Police is outside the scope of this report.
Any aggregated totals for England and Wales exclude data from the British Transport Police, which means that the totals will differ from those published by the Home Office. If any other police forces didn’t supply data and aren’t included in the total figures, we will mention this.
Timeliness of the data
We use data that has been collected outside our PEEL inspection to support our fieldwork.
This report contains the latest data available before the start of our inspection and the data that the force gave us during our inspection. If more recent data becomes available after our inspection fieldwork and shows that the force’s performance has changed, we will comment on this.
Reporting rates per population
In this report, we sometimes present information as rates per 1,000 population in each police force area. This allows our data to be comparable across all forces. Where population data is used in our calculations, we use the latest mid-year population estimates from the Office for National Statistics.
Reporting where the force is significantly different from the average
In this report, we have included bar charts with dotted red lines to show where a force is significantly different from the average for forces in England and Wales.
The dotted lines on the bar charts show one standard deviation above and below the unweighted average of all forces. Standard deviation summarises the difference between each individual value and the average and can be used to identify extreme or rare values.
Forces that are more than one standard deviation above or below the average are considered significantly different. These forces are outside the red dotted lines on our bar charts and we have highlighted them in either a dark blue (forces above average) or light blue (forces below average) colour. Typically, 32 percent of forces will be above or below these lines for any given measure.
Reporting on police workforce survey data
We survey the police workforce throughout England and Wales to understand their experiences at work. The survey is an opportunity for the whole workforce to share their views with us. It is a valuable source of information as it isn’t possible to speak to everyone in a force during our inspection.
However, the responses we receive come from a non-statistical, voluntary sample within the workforce. The number of responses also varies between forces. This means that the results may be not representative of the workforce population.
We treat the results with caution and don’t use them to assess police forces. Instead, we use the results to establish themes that should be explored further during our inspection fieldwork. The results can also be used to give more evidence and validate information from other sources.
Victim service assessment
We carry out a victim service assessment for all forces as part of our inspection programme.
We assess the service that a force provides to victims. This is from the point of reporting a crime and throughout an investigation.
We also evaluate how forces record crimes. We assess every force on its crime recording practices at least once every three years.
Details of the technical methodology for the victim service assessment.
Stop and search audits
We carry out a stop and search audit for all forces as part of our inspection programme.
Our stop and search audits allow us to evaluate how well forces use their stop and search powers. We review how many stop and searches a force carried out under section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 or section 23 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. We analyse:
- the rate of disproportionality in use of stop and search by ethnicity;
- the proportion of stop and searches that had reasonable grounds;
- the outcomes of the stop and searches that the force carried out; and
- find rates (the rates at which officers find what they are searching for in a stop and search encounter).