In 2023–2025, we carried out a PEEL inspection of Wiltshire Police. PEEL stands for police efficiency, effectiveness and legitimacy.
We inspected how well the force performed in several areas of policing. Most of these areas were then graded as outstanding, good, adequate, requires improvement or inadequate.
Find out more about Wiltshire Police
More information about the PEEL assessments
Our inspection assessed how good Wiltshire Police is in ten areas of policing. We make graded judgments in nine of these ten as follows:
We also inspected how effective a service Wiltshire 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.
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.
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.
I am satisfied with some aspects of the performance of Wiltshire Police in keeping people safe, reducing crime and providing victims with an effective service, but there are areas in which the force needs to improve.
Since our last inspection, the force has made significant efforts to improve in the areas we highlighted as causes of concern or areas for improvement.
I am most pleased to see the considerable improvements in force leadership and management. New clear strategic priorities, plans, and effective governance have created strong foundations for better performance in all the areas we inspected. But chief officers must improve force access to accurate key data and mend the disconnect between the executive team and some of their senior leaders.
We found that the force has made improvements within the control room. Call handlers now carry out an effective structured risk assessment. This means the force routinely identifies repeat victims and vulnerable people. And call handlers give appropriate advice on crime prevention and preservation of evidence. These improvements help the force safeguard the vulnerable at the earliest opportunity.
But the force isn’t answering emergency calls as quickly as it should. And the number of non-emergency calls members of the public abandon because they aren’t answered remains high. We also found that officers didn’t attend calls for service within the required attendance time. These areas must be improved to maintain victims’ confidence and maximise opportunities to solve crime.
In our last inspection we found that the force frequently took neighbourhood officers away from their role and they were unable to prioritise prevention activity. During this inspection we found local teams were better staffed, effectively communicating with their communities and striving to solve their problems. The force supports these local officers by giving them clear direction and effective co-ordination from the neighbourhood harm reduction unit.
Wiltshire Police has also improved how it manages offenders and suspects. It has a robust and risk-based approach to pursuing those that it needs to arrest. The two teams that deal with the management of sexual and violent offenders, and the investigation of online child abuse, are appropriately trained and managed. They often work together and with neighbourhood officers, using effective tactics and technology, to identify offences and promptly arrest these most dangerous offenders.
We found areas where the force is performing at a similar level to when we last carried out an inspection. The force must improve how it gathers and analyses data in relation to how its officers use force and their stop and search powers. And it should provide better training to those who use and supervise these important policing powers.
The force is still not adequately investigating crime. Although some aspects have improved, there isn’t enough supervisory oversight of investigations. And the force doesn’t routinely identify victims’ needs which means they don’t receive the level of service they require. The force needs to improve in this area to achieve better outcomes for victims of crime.
Wiltshire Police has processes to identify, prioritise and address vulnerability. But current structures, and lack of access to enough accurate data, limits how effectively the force can safeguard vulnerable people. The force has mitigated the effects of its previous significant failure to comply with the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme. But it must make sure the current performance is sustainable.
It is also important that the force creates effective processes for monitoring orders that protect vulnerable individuals. Such processes will make sure the force proactively identifies breaches and acts on them. Existing arrangements mean the force is too reliant on the vulnerable to report further victimisation. However, we were pleased to find improvements in how the force deals with domestic abuse and child safeguarding as part of the multi-agency safeguarding hubs.
I was pleased to see how the force creates opportunities for personnel to develop, including those from under-represented groups. And I look forward to hearing how the force develops the innovative ‘We Rise’ development programme for officers and staff.
I am satisfied with the way the force has responded to our concerns and I will be monitoring progress closely.
HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary
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.
Wiltshire Police leaders have clear plans and priorities for the force. Operational activity focuses on these priorities. The force has reviewed and restructured governance to provide more effective oversight and scrutiny. This is leading to sustainable improvements in performance.
The force carried out a strategic assessment of its structures and processes. As a result, it changed its operating model. Once fully implemented and accepted, these changes should further improve the service the force provides to the public.
Chief officers effectively communicate with the workforce. This increases the senior leadership’s understanding of the challenges personnel are facing.
There are new levels of investment for future leadership training at all levels. The force has started to provide effective first-line supervisor training. It has also reintroduced the ranks of chief inspector and chief superintendent. This has increased leadership capacity and capability. But these, and other significant changes, have resulted in some senior leaders being unclear of what is expected of them. There is a disconnect between them and chief officers. This reduces their capacity to perform well and contribute effectively to the force’s work.
Leaders don’t have access to enough quality data to support strategic decision‑making processes. For example, the force doesn’t have a workforce skills database. This limited the scale of improvement of performance when the force introduced the first part of the new operating model. And the force doesn’t have access to some partnership data. This prevents the force fully understanding demand and how to approach it effectively.
More detail on Wiltshire Police’s leadership is included in the main body of the report.
The reducing crime assessment sets out what Wiltshire Police is doing to reduce crime and how effective this action is. This assessment doesn’t include police recorded crime figures. This is because they can be affected by variations and changes in recording policy and practice, making it difficult to draw comparisons over time.
Wiltshire Police prioritises the prevention of crime. It has an effective neighbourhood harm reduction unit that leads and co-ordinates prevention activity across the force. This includes a variety of early intervention initiatives, helping to divert young people from offending.
The force’s neighbourhood policing teams are rarely diverted from their core role. They work well with communities to understand and meet their needs. They build trust and confidence with the public, and encourage them to share information to help deter crime. These teams work well with other organisations. This helps the force develop long-term, sustainable plans to find the root cause of repeat problems and to make changes that will benefit communities. The force is successful at encouraging its communities to become involved in a wide range of local policing activity.
We found that when crimes take place, officers and staff are proactive in pursuing and arresting offenders.
Officers routinely record reasonable grounds for stop and search. But the force needs to provide training to its officers to increase their confidence in using stop and search powers. This will expand their use of the power to help reduce crime.
Wiltshire Police should improve its recording of antisocial behaviour crimes. This is to make sure it gives the public an effective service. The force also needs to respond to incidents within published timescales and update callers if there is likely to be a delay.
More detail on what Wiltshire Police is doing to reduce crime is included in the main body of the report.
This section describes our assessment of the service Wiltshire 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:
A person has been charged or summonsed for the crime.
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 calls. It needs to reduce the number of non-emergency calls that the caller abandons because the call isn’t answered, or is answered too slowly. When the force answers calls, it uses a structured process that takes into account threat, harm, risk, and vulnerability. The force identifies repeat victims, meaning that it is aware of the victim’s circumstances when considering its response. Call handlers were polite and gave victims advice on crime prevention and on how to preserve evidence.
On some occasions, the force doesn’t respond to calls for service within set timescales. It doesn’t always inform victims of delays, meaning that victims’ expectations weren’t always met. This may cause victims to lose confidence and disengage from the process.
The force records most of the crimes that are reported but should improve its crime recording processes to make sure that all crimes reported to it are recorded correctly and without delay.
We set out more details about the force’s crime recording in the ‘Recording data about crime’ section.
In most cases, the force investigates in a timely way. But the force doesn’t always complete relevant and proportionate lines of inquiry. Wiltshire Police doesn’t always supervise investigations well, but it does regularly update victims. Victims are more likely to have confidence in a police investigation when they receive regular updates.
A thorough investigation increases the likelihood of perpetrators being identified and arrested, providing a positive result for the victim. In all cases we reviewed, victim personal statements were taken. These give victims the opportunity to describe how that crime has affected their lives.
When victims withdrew support for an investigation, the force mostly considered progressing the case without the victim’s support. This can be an important method of safeguarding the victim and preventing further offences. However, the force didn’t always record 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 didn’t always carry out this assessment or record the request for additional support.
The force mostly closes crimes with the appropriate outcome type but there are delays in assigning some outcomes. It records a clear rationale for using a certain outcome and supervises this effectively. It seeks victims’ views when deciding which outcome type to assign to a closed investigation. However, there are instances when the force didn’t obtain a required auditable record of the victim’s wishes. The force did inform victims of the outcome code assigned to the investigation.
Wiltshire Police is adequate at recording crime.
The Home Office Counting Rules, which provide the standard for crime recording in England and Wales, have changed since the last time we inspected the force for crime data integrity.
This change mainly relates to the way forces record violent crime. This means we can no longer compare the findings from this audit to those from previous audits.
We estimate that Wiltshire Police is recording 92.4 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 2.7 percent) of all reported crime (excluding fraud).
We estimate that the force is recording 90.1 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 4.6 percent) of violent offences.
We estimate that the force is recording 93.8 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 4.2 percent) of sexual offences.
The force doesn’t always correctly record crimes of rape and reported incidents of rape (N100s). In our audit we found that the force had recorded 34 out of 41 crimes of rape which should have been recorded. Of the seven unrecorded crimes of rape, five were incorrectly recorded as N100s or other crimes and two weren’t recorded at all. The force should improve its recording practices to make sure that rape crimes and reported incidents of rape are recorded correctly.
The force records significantly less than half of crime within 24 hours, including reports of rape, often taking more than three days to do so. Recording crime without delay means victims receive the support they require. And it means the force establishes an effective investigation.
The force is failing to record a significant number of crimes and tackle problems when antisocial behaviour is reported by victims. We examined 50 incidents. Of these, 22 crimes should have been recorded but only ten actually were. Victims of antisocial behaviour are often the subject of abuse and torment for substantial periods of time, and crime is often committed by neighbours. Failing to record crimes and provide an effective service to tackle antisocial behaviour can mean victims live in fear in their own homes while being subjected to long-term abuse and torment by people living next door or in the local community.
The force’s data for victims of crime shows that age and gender are well recorded, ethnicity is less well recorded and other protected characteristics aren’t well recorded. The force should be collecting this information to understand the extent to which each protected group is affected by crime, how this differs from those without the protected characteristics, and whether these victims need a different response.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to crime data integrity.
The force doesn’t always record crimes against vulnerable victims. We examined 70 cases. 52 crimes should have been recorded but only 48 actually were. Two of the crimes not recorded were crimes of rape. When the crime wasn’t recorded, there was often no investigation and sometimes no safeguarding of the victim. Failure to record these crimes can result in offenders not being identified or brought to justice.
Wiltshire Police requires improvement at using police powers and treating people fairly and respectfully.
We found the force lacks an in-depth understanding of how it uses stop and search and use of force powers. There is an under-recording of use of force and stop and search in Wiltshire. Poor IT systems have resulted in stop and search records not being uploaded to force systems. The force estimates that only 67.1 percent of stop and search forms upload successfully. The force told us an IT solution would resolve this after April 2024.
We also found that officers don’t always complete the self-defined ethnicity field on the stop and search form, which means the force doesn’t have complete ethnicity data for the use of this power. The force should make sure that officers record ethnicity data in all stop and search incidents. The force has implemented a learning package for stop and search, with 80 percent of officers completing the training.
The force doesn’t record all use of force incidents. In the year ending 31 March 2023, the force recorded 2,297 use of force incidents. During the same period officers made 6,437 arrests. We would expect the number of uses of force to be greater than the number of arrests. Accordingly, we estimate that Wiltshire Police under-recorded use of force by at least 5,258 incidents. This suggests use of force may be recorded for only 30 percent of incidents. Senior leaders told us that in February 2024 incidents recorded had risen to 60.8 percent of the number of arrests made.
It is important that the force gathers accurate data to understand how its officers are using their powers. This will help it to improve performance and allow it to publish correct data. Senior leaders have shared their plans with us which should resolve this problem.
Wiltshire Police doesn’t have sufficient internal scrutiny on its use of force to identify opportunities to learn and improve. Officers and supervisors told us that there is no process to review the use of force. Wiltshire Police can’t monitor when officers use body-worn video to record use of force incidents. The force needs to make sure that officers record use of force incidents on video. Supervisors should then review the footage to make sure interactions are lawful, fair and respectful.
We found that the force trains new officers to develop their knowledge of culture and unconscious bias. But this isn’t supported by any subsequent related training later in their career. The force is missing an opportunity to increase officers’ confidence in using this power and to improve how its officers interact with members of the community. We found that supervisors haven’t received training in how to review records. The force may not find procedural failings unless supervisors understand their responsibilities. We were told some officers weren’t confident in their use of stop and search powers. This is supported by the lower rate of stop and search within the force. In the year ending 31 March 2023, Wiltshire Police carried out 1,765 stop and searches. This represented 2.3 per 1,000 population and was lower than the average rate for England and Wales of 8.6 per 1,000 population.
We identified a lack of confidence in using this power when we inspected the force in 2021/22. Our findings suggest the force hasn’t addressed this. However, the force is now beginning to supply improved training that aims to boost officers’ confidence to use stop and search when it is appropriate.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to police powers and treating people fairly and respectfully.
During our inspection, we reviewed a sample of 231 stop and search records from 1 October 2022 to 30 September 2023. Based on this sample, we estimate that 90 percent (with a confidence interval of +/- 3.5 percentage points) of all stop and searches by the force during this period had reasonable grounds recorded. This is an improvement compared to the findings from our previous review of records from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020, where we found 79.2 percent of stop and searches (with a confidence interval of +/- 5.7 percentage points) had reasonable grounds. Of the records we reviewed for stop and searches on people who self-identified as an ethnic minority, 27 out of 27 had reasonable grounds recorded.
During our inspection we viewed body-worn video recordings of officers carrying out stop and searches. We observed that Wiltshire officers treat people with dignity and respect and complied with the necessary legislation and processes.
Wiltshire Police is trying to better understand any disproportionality that may occur when using police powers.
We examine disproportionality data for stop and search rates between people from ethnic minority backgrounds and White people. A value of less than 0.8 shows that a person from an ethnic minority background is less likely to be stopped and searched than someone who is White. A value higher than 1.25 shows that someone from an ethnic minority background is more likely to be stopped and searched than someone who is White.
In Wiltshire, based on population data from the 2021 census, Asian or Asian British people were less likely to be stopped and searched than White people. Black or Black British people were 4.5 times as likely, and people from multiple ethnic minority backgrounds were 2.2 times as likely. The likelihood of a person who is Black or Black British being stopped and searched across England and Wales is 4.1 times that of a white person. This shows that Wiltshire Police has slightly higher than average levels of disproportionality in its use of stop and search powers compared to England and Wales as a whole.
With regards to the use of force, Wiltshire Police lacks accurate data regarding use of force. It should assure itself that it fully understands the scope and effect of disproportionality. The force is developing a dataset of the ethnic demographic make‑up of small local areas. This localised information will allow the force to more accurately understand any disproportionality in officers’ use of stop and search, and use of force.
External scrutiny panels operate effectively within Wiltshire. They are chaired independently and have a diverse, recently refreshed membership. Panels review up to ten incidents of stop and search, and use of force, every six weeks. We saw panel members give their opinions on how well officers follow procedures and communicate with the public.
The force uses this feedback to improve public treatment by sharing learning with officers. The force, with the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, is introducing a new external scrutiny panel feedback process to demonstrate how it has responded to the panels’ observations. And the force is continuing to improve its established internal scrutiny panels of stop and search, and use of force. Senior leaders have recently attended these panels and demonstrated clear direction on how the panels should support officers. This will continue to improve officers’ fair and lawful use of these powers.
Wiltshire Police is good at prevention and deterrence.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to prevention and deterrence.
The force has a community commitment document for each neighbourhood team. These set out minimum standards of community engagement. Local policing teams are held to account for achieving these standards at performance meetings.
In 2023, the force re-launched community messaging, which it told us achieved 15,149 subscribers by August 2023. It uses social media to reach even more people. We found an example of a Facebook Live event, run by a local policing team, that the force told us was viewed by 6,800 people. The force told us that in early 2024 the chief constable and deputy chief constable talked directly to local communities in another Facebook Live event. About 3,400 people viewed it. And the chief constable publishes a widely read, informative, fortnightly open letter to the Police and Crime Commissioner on the force website.
We also heard of officers carrying out street briefings with partners, where they gave information to local communities on how they were tackling antisocial behaviour issues. And the force has invested in two mobile police stations to reach more rural areas, with location details published on its website.
The force is working with seldom heard communities. We found an example of successful force-wide problem-solving activity to tackle burglary in the Chinese community. We also heard how the force’s professional standards department reaches out to seldom heard communities. This is to understand and overcome any barriers community members may face when considering making complaints. And the force’s ‘We Rise’ personnel development programme included a community project module. This created a positive opportunity for young homeless people to communicate with police officers and staff.
‘Safer public spaces’ is one of three force priorities. We saw strong leadership aimed at increasing effective prevention activity, with an assistant chief constable clearly leading this work. The force rarely takes neighbourhood officers away from their beats. Accordingly, we found neighbourhood teams focused on their core role. They have time to communicate with local communities and understand local issues and deal with them.
Some neighbourhood teams are co-located with other services. This results in strong partnership teams that set both short and long-term priorities. We found a wide range of activities to prevent or reduce the effect of crime and harm. Neighbourhood teams are working with the football association on a 15-week programme to run a ‘Roots to Shoots’ course. And the force uses a programme called SWIFT to work with troubled young people. Both these initiatives help officers to communicate with young people and divert them from risk and crime. The force is also running an operation against county lines. This includes a proactive hotel watch designed to raise awareness amongst hotel staff, so they can identify issues relating to child sexual exploitation. Each local hotel has signed up to an agreement to report any suspicious activity or safeguarding issues.
The force has introduced a neighbourhood harm reduction unit (NHRU) that co‑ordinates, evaluates, and promotes problem-solving activity. The team provides guidance and support to officers and staff about problem-solving. And it manages the systems where the plans are stored. A monthly meeting hosted by the NHRU shares learning and promotes improvements.
The force uses a structured problem-solving model called OSARA. We found their use of the model to be effective. This approach is supported by academic research, partnership involvement, and a force ‘STAR chamber’ that brings together ideas on how to solve problems.
We saw many examples of good problem-solving plans (PSPs). Most of these involved the police working with other statutory agencies, businesses, and volunteers. In November 2023, the force started one PSP related to a series of bicycle thefts on a retail park. The officer researched the problem well and the team carried out appropriate activity. This included crime prevention advice to cyclists, a bike-marking event, and working with local businesses and landlords. Offences reduced and the plan was closed. Another PSP involved youth antisocial behaviour in a town centre. This was also well researched, with information collected that included times offences were committed, likely offenders and reference to a previous PSP. Activity included residents’ meetings, social media, patrol plans, leafleting, CCTV, and communication with young people, the community and councillors. This plan is regularly reviewed by the sergeant and has been audited by the NHRU.
This is a significant improvement since our last PEEL inspection in 2021/22 when we found limited evidence of effective problem-solving, and inconsistencies in how the force recorded, monitored, and evaluated problem-solving activity.
In the year ending 31 March 2023, the force recorded 14.6 antisocial behaviour incidents per 1,000 population, which is in the normal range for forces in England and Wales. However, as discussed in the ‘Recording data about crime’ section of this report, we found that the force needs to improve its recording of antisocial behaviour personal crime.
The force has recently provided training to officers about antisocial behaviour tools and powers, partnership working, and understanding antisocial behaviour. The force has also introduced antisocial behaviour officers to work alongside neighbourhood policing teams to target antisocial behaviour.
We found examples of the force using antisocial behaviour legislation effectively. In one case the neighbourhood policing team worked closely with a housing association and the local authority to tackle a problem where a person was constantly verbally abusing their neighbours. The housing association issued an acceptable behaviour contract, supported by activity managed by a police problem-solving plan. The individual’s behaviour got worse, and police attended the multi-agency anti-social behaviour risk assessment conference. Here, the local authority decided to issue a community protection warning. The subject of this warning continued with their antisocial behaviour. The police worked with the other partner organisations to gather enough evidence to successfully apply to the Crown Prosecution Service for a Criminal Behaviour Order. In February 2024, the court found the individual guilty of five breaches of the Criminal Behaviour Order. The force told us that the individual received a sentence of 38 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 18 months.
However, despite the effective use of orders, the force could use them more frequently. In the year ending 31 March 2023, Wiltshire issued 43 Antisocial Behaviour Orders across 10,964 antisocial behaviour incidents, a ratio of 0.4 percent of Antisocial Behaviour Orders to antisocial behaviour incidents. This is lower than expected when compared to all forces in England and Wales (average ratio of 1.3 percent of Antisocial Behaviour Orders issued to antisocial behaviour incidents).
Figure 1: Ratio of Antisocial Behaviour Orders issued to antisocial behaviour incidents recorded by forces in England and Wales in the year ending 31 March 2023
Source: Data collection and analysis from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services
Note: Anti-Social Behaviour Orders include Criminal Behaviour Orders, Community Protection Notices, civil injunctions, and dispersal powers (under section 34 of the Antisocial behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014).
The force encourages people from a range of backgrounds to become involved in policing activity. This involvement starts with an established mini police programme.
The force NHRU co-ordinates volunteering activity. Some volunteers are students at a local college and volunteering is part of their formal qualification. Volunteers are well supported, trained, and equipped. They help the force with a variety of roles including carrying out leaflet drops, reassurance patrols, and acting as mental health tactical advisors.
Cadets are used effectively in operations. They visit hotels to test the staff’s awareness of child exploitation and this informs future police prevention activity. And cadets go to shops to attempt to purchase knives and vapes, to test whether sellers would commit unlawful activity.
Special constables carry out specialist activities, such as digital investigation and drone operation, in addition to supporting neighbourhood and response teams. And the force receives specialist technical advice from a local office of a national IT company. But we did find that special constables had less training and general support than regular officers.
Wiltshire Police requires improvement at responding to the public.
In the year ending 31 March 2024, Wiltshire Police answered 70.4 percent of 999 calls within 10 seconds. This was below the expected standard of answering 90 percent within 10 seconds.
Figure 2: Proportion of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds by forces in England and Wales in the year ending 31 March 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 31 March 2024, Wiltshire Police received 137 calls to 999 per 1,000 population. This was lower than expected compared to other forces in England and Wales.
Senior leaders consistently monitor available call handling data which has resulted in the force focusing on answering these calls more quickly. Recent data shows improvements have been made. It is important the force sustains these recent improvements so it can provide an effective service to the public, maintain public confidence and maximise investigative opportunities.
The force told us that in the 12 months to February 2024 a total of 25.8 percent of calls were abandoned by callers after they had spoken to the switchboard. Forces with a switchboard, such as Wiltshire Police, should aim for an abandonment rate of 5 percent.
Since November 2023, the switchboard assesses non-emergency calls. Those callers requiring police attendance within an hour are placed in a ‘priority line’ queue. The force returns the calls to anyone who abandons in this queue, which reduces some of the risk.
Nonetheless, that risk remains untested until contact is re-established. And other unknown risks may be hidden in the non-priority queue. Senior leaders have a good understanding of this data. But the force must reduce the abandonment rate in 101 calls.
In 60 of the 84 cases we examined, the force didn’t attend incidents in line with its published attendance times. This delayed response can lead to the force missing opportunities to safeguard victims or collect evidence. And in 14 of the 26 relevant cases the force didn’t inform victims of delays, meaning that victims’ expectations weren’t always met. This may cause victims to lose confidence and disengage from the process.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force responds to the public.
The force’s control room staff use a risk-assessment process called THRIVE. The force does a good job of scrutinising how frequently and effectively it uses this process. In our victim service assessment, we found that there was effective and appropriate supervision in all 22 cases where this was required. And we found the call handler used THRIVE to assess risk and consider the needs of the caller in 89 of 91 applicable cases.
This is an improvement from our PEEL 2021/22 inspection when we found the force only carried out a risk assessment in 18 out of 51 cases.
In our victim service assessment, we found evidence of a check to identify a repeat victim in 78 of 85 relevant cases. The information gathered when a call handler identified a repeat victim was used effectively in 33 of 36 cases. And the victim service assessment found call handlers checked for vulnerability in 81 of 84 relevant cases. Where a call handler identified a vulnerable person, this was recorded in 40 of 47 cases. Therefore, staff were aware of the victim’s circumstances when considering what response to provide.
In our victim service assessment, the call handler gave appropriate advice on the preservation of evidence in 19 of 22 relevant cases. This means the force will be creating opportunities to secure evidence at crime scenes, or to gather evidence of antisocial behaviour that might support its investigations. And in our assessment we found the call handler gave appropriate crime prevention advice in 21 of 23 relevant cases. Good crime prevention advice reduces harm to the public and demand on the service.
Wiltshire Police requires improvement at investigating crime.
The force isn’t always achieving acceptable outcomes for victims of crime. It has low numbers of crimes that are solved following investigations. It needs to understand the issue and work to achieve better outcomes for victims.
In the year ending 30 September 2023, Wiltshire Police recorded 36,760 victim‑based crimes. Of these recorded offences, 10.4 percent were assigned an ‘offences brought to justice’ outcome. This is within the normal range compared to the average for forces in England and Wales.
Figure 3: Percentage of victim-based crime recorded by Wiltshire Police and all forces in England and Wales by selected outcome types in the year ending 30 September 2023
| Outcome type | Wiltshire outcome rate | England and Wales outcome rate | |
| 1 – Charged/summonsed | 8.1% | 5.5% | |
| 2 & 3 – Caution – youths & adults | 0.7% | 0.7% | |
| 8 – Community resolutions | 1.2% | 1.6% | |
| 9 – Prosecution not in the public interest (Crown Prosecution Service decision) | 0.1% | 0.0% | |
| 10 & 21 – Prosecution not in the public interest (police decision) | 0.6% | 0.9% | |
| 14 – Evidential difficulties (suspect not identified but the victim declines or is unable to support) | 1.9% | 5.8% | |
| 15 – Evidential difficulties (suspect identified; victim supports police action) | 14.6% | 13.4% | |
| 16 – Evidential difficulties (suspect identified; victim does not support or withdraws support) | 24.8% | 21.8% | |
| 17 – Prosecution time limit expired | 0.6% | 0.3% | |
| 18 – Investigation complete – no suspect identified | 37.6% | 43.6% | |
| 20 – Action undertaken by another body/ agency | 2.7% | 1.4% | |
| 22 – Diversionary, educational or intervention activity | 0.3% | 0.3% | |
Source: Police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables from the Home Office
Note: Presented data comes from the January 2024 data release and may have been revised since. British Transport Police and City of London data are excluded from the England and Wales rate. Total police-recorded crime includes all crime (except fraud). For a full commentary and explanation of crime and outcome types please see the Home Office statistics.
Figure 4: Proportion of victim-based crimes assigned a ‘charged/summonsed’ outcome (outcome 1) by Wiltshire Police between the year ending 31 March 2015 and the year ending 30 September 2023
Source: Police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables from the Home Office
Note: Presented data comes from the January 2024 data release and may have been revised since. Victim-based crimes are defined as all police-recorded crimes where there is a direct victim, such as an individual, an organisation or a corporate body.
Between the year ending 30 September 2022 and 30 September 2023, the proportion of victim-based crimes assigned outcome 14: Evidential difficulties (suspect not identified; victim does not support further action) decreased from 2.2 percent to 1.9 percent. This value is lower than expected compared to the average for forces in England and Wales.
In our victim service assessment we found that supervisors didn’t always carry out regular reviews to make sure that investigations were progressed. Only 74 of the 98 cases we examined had evidence of effective supervision. Appropriate supervision is an important factor in how well forces carry out investigations. When supervision is absent or not good enough, investigations become less thorough and the service to victims declines. Accordingly, we also found that all appropriate and proportionate investigative opportunities were taken throughout the investigation in only 76 out of 98 cases.
Senior leaders have recently increased support to sergeants by providing them with templates, training and feedback. The force intends to clearly link supervisory reviews into the new performance framework. Improving supervision will make sure Wiltshire Police takes all investigative opportunities.
The force doesn’t consistently help victims to access their rights as laid out in the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (‘the Victims Code’). This code sets out the minimum level of service that victims of crime should receive from the criminal justice system. We found that officers and staff completed victim needs assessments in 48 out of 76 relevant cases, meaning the force didn’t always recognise when a victim was entitled to an enhanced service. Where enhanced service was required, this was only recorded in 12 of 29 cases. These omissions resulted in the force not giving a good enough level of service to victims.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force investigates crime.
The reasons for a victim withdrawing support for an investigation were recorded in 14 of the 18 relevant cases we reviewed. However, we found that there was an auditable record of the victim’s wishes, such as a signed statement, in only 6 of the relevant 16 cases we reviewed. This information is important for understanding why a victim doesn’t support a prosecution.
Our victim service assessment found that the force allocated investigations appropriately in 95 of the 100 cases examined. But victims receive a different service depending on which area of the force deals with them, and we found a lack of consistency in who investigated specific types of crime. The force crime allocation policy wasn’t always adhered to and some investigations weren’t allocated promptly. We found officers who were confused about which crimes they, and those from other departments, should be investigating. One understaffed criminal investigation department office wouldn’t investigate some serious and complex offences. And response officers in this part of the force were often dealing with these crimes.
This approach means the force doesn’t always use officers and staff in their proper role or have the most appropriately skilled personnel, with the necessary support, dealing with investigations. Standards of investigation are inconsistent. The force doesn’t have a strategic overview of demand within every team. And it is missing opportunities to identify and roll out good practice across the organisation.
Senior leaders are aware of this problem. They are introducing an allocations team and implementing the second part of the new operating model (TOM 2). Both developments are designed to address this issue and improve the service the force provides to victims of crime.
In our victim service assessment we found that the agreed victim contract had been adhered to in 70 of 72 relevant cases. Providing updates helps maintain a victim’s trust and their support for investigations and prosecutions.
Officers and staff considered a victim personal statement in all the relevant cases we reviewed. This gives an opportunity for a victim to explain how a crime has affected them and allows their voice to be heard.
Officers and staff wrote investigation plans for 80 of the relevant 89 cases. And these plans were followed in 76 of those investigations.
These are an improvement on our findings of the PEEL 2021/22 force inspection.
In April 2023, the force reintroduced its Victim Voice Survey. This was supported by a task force that studied the survey results to understand how well the force was treating victims. The force improved the survey by adding a free text section. This provided an opportunity for the victim to give a more detailed and personal account of their experience of the force’s investigation of the crime. The information from the surveys is presented at several force meetings. This identifies themes requiring department or force-wide action. The force gives feedback to local supervisors. This allows them to inform individual officers of positive comments from victims. And it shows supervisors where performance should be improved.
The force has told us that most victim satisfaction rates have improved since April 2023. Of note is the overall burglary victim satisfaction rate of 83.9 percent in the year ending February 2024. This is an increase of 3.8 percent from the previous year.
Senior leaders continue to develop the force to make sure investigations are victim centred. This includes new victim and witness partnership meetings supported by a new partnership strategy and delivery plan. The force has also created an app for electronic devices which, if used by officers and staff will allow them to access Victim Voice Survey information directly. These initiatives should continue to improve the level of service the force gives to victims.
Wiltshire Police created a team to carry out geographical and thematic reviews of force performance. They are part of the force improvement programme called Evolve. The information that this team gathers is consistent with our auditing. Their audits and inspections have produced findings that have allowed the force to confidently implement activity to improve investigation standards. This has included new investigation templates to guide officers, refreshed investigative training and new supervisory review processes.
This team has also taken feedback from operational personnel about the effects of force initiatives. For example, officers quickly told the Evolve team about how much time the new investigation templates take to complete and the problems new IT was causing to their investigations. So, the force acted to mitigate these concerns.
Wiltshire Police requires improvement at protecting vulnerable people.
Wiltshire Police has a vulnerability strategy and a vulnerability improvement plan that is aligned to the National Vulnerability Action Plan on the Vulnerability, Knowledge and Practice Programme website. There is a clear meeting structure which should track activity related to the plan. But while the force has dedicated vulnerability leads to instigate this activity, these leads are from several directorates, not just ‘protecting vulnerable people’, and the force has changed a number of these leads over a brief period. This may have affected the force’s ability to promptly progress action plans.
Accordingly, we identified that updates were recorded inconsistently. This means that senior officers can’t track activity or identify emerging performance challenges. The force is reviewing these structures as part of planned changes to its operating model (TOM 2) in the summer of 2024.
The force lacks access to partnership information. Therefore, it doesn’t fully understand the scale of vulnerability. And it doesn’t have a clear understanding of its own data. This affects its ability to make evidence-based responses to strategic and operational issues. This was evident when senior officers told us that the force doesn’t know why it records a low level of high-risk domestic assaults. Additionally, when the force provided us with data about its use of Domestic Violence Protection Orders, those responsible for this work couldn’t explain what the data was showing us. We discuss the force’s problems with data further in our chapter on leadership and force management.
This scheme gives people the right to ask whether a partner has a violent past. Between April 2015 and August 2023, the force was providing incorrect and incomplete information in response to applications made under Clare’s Law. This failure to properly disclose information put applicants at risk.
As a result of this issue, the force declared a critical incident. The force assessed that it had to review over 3,500 applications to find any errors and make further disclosures as necessary. The force moved extra personnel into the team to carry out this work. The force has now completed this review.
The number of new applications for disclosure has increased. There is no backlog of new cases and senior leaders are confident that disclosures are now accurate. But this has been achieved because of the extra temporary personnel in the team. The force must make sure it has a sustainable model to manage this demand. The model will need to have sufficiently trained personnel, timely procedures with performance metrics, and governance oversight. This will make sure the force complies with the legislative process and time limits for disclosure.
During our inspection, and as part of our wider work on the super-complaint on the police response to stalking, we found the force had no proactive procedures for monitoring offenders’ compliance with orders, such as Domestic Violence Protection Orders. Nor was there a prioritisation process for breaches. This means the force relies on vulnerable victims to report further victimisation. This also reduces the effectiveness of orders to protect victims.
The force’s issues with obtaining current performance data left it unable to effectively identify, monitor or address performance issues for obtaining and policing orders.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force protects vulnerable people.
Wiltshire Police recognises the importance of feedback from victims to improve how it can more effectively safeguard the vulnerable.
The force has created Listening Circle Forums. The aim was to create a safe space for women and girls to share their experiences, to improve force services regarding violence against women and girls. These events have been paused to allow the force to evaluate their effect. However, five victims from these circles volunteered to be video recorded explaining how the police treated them. The force shows these on officer training days to increase their understanding of victims’ needs.
The force also holds meetings with independent domestic abuse advisors to hear what victims say about how the force has treated them.
The force audit team reviews 50 investigations every month, on a different theme. In 2023 the themes included rape and serious sexual assault, domestic abuse and stalking. Officers receive feedback as to the quality of service they provided. This is in addition to the mandatory reviews that supervisors should be completing, as detailed in our chapter on investigating crime.
We were disappointed to find that victims of stalking and domestic abuse aren’t included in regular survey work. We were told that an IT problem had stalled the work the force had carried out to remedy this.
In 2023, Wiltshire Police provided face-to-face Domestic Abuse Matters training to 1,650 of its personnel. The College of Policing and SafeLives developed this training to support cultural change in the approach of police officers and staff. In December 2023, it also ran a violence against women and girls multi-agency conference. These should increase officers’ understanding of how to effectively investigate such crimes.
Force processes for multi-agency risk assessment conferences (MARACs) are effective. They bring together partner agencies to share intelligence and to jointly support individual agencies in solutions aimed at reducing risk from domestic abuse. We observed both the county and Swindon MARACs. We saw force attendees suggest appropriate and wide-ranging actions aimed at reducing the risk to victims.
In the year ending 30 September 2023, Wiltshire Police recorded 2,911 arrests for domestic abuse related offences. As a percentage of all domestic abuse related crimes recorded by the force this equated to an arrest rate of 40.1 percent, compared to the England and Wales arrest rate of 35.3 percent. The force told us that in the year ending 29 February 2024, their domestic abuse arrest rate had risen to 46.1 percent. A higher arrest rate suggests the force has a proactive approach to dealing with domestic abuse that will reduce repeat offending and safeguard more victims.
In the year ending 30 September 2023, Wiltshire Police identified 941 repeat domestic abuse related crimes, which equated to 1.3 such crimes per 1,000 population. This was lower than the average rate across all forces in England and Wales of 4.9 repeat domestic abuse related crimes per 1,000 population.
Officers now risk assess every incident of domestic abuse without delay and supervisors quality assure these assessments. This informs the extent of any required safeguarding activity for those affected. Officers complete public protection notices (PPNs) for those that they believe need to be referred to other agencies for safeguarding. We found that the PPNs were timely but often the voice of the child was absent in those relating to children. This may leave children vulnerable. The force was aware of this issue and officers now receive information on voice of the child on mandatory training days.
Officers and staff from the multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH) give presentations on safeguarding to new officer recruits and other relevant teams. They also provide feedback to individuals on the quality of their referrals in a structured and effective manner.
This is an improvement from the findings of our last inspection. The force should continue to improve the consistency of information gathered, so vulnerable people can access the support they need.
The force area has dedicated personnel in two MASHs. The officers and staff there have received training and mentoring to support them in developing risk reducing actions in partnership.
The working relationships with partner organisations in the MASH are strong. Organisations share data at a strategic and tactical level with support from an analyst dedicated to working in the MASH. Supervisors use this data in the six-weekly one‑to‑ones they hold with their team. Every month managers select at least three PPNs for review and the results are covered in one-to-ones with the relevant personnel.
The Swindon MASH has adopted parts of the Humberside partnership integrated triage meetings (PIT Stop). This includes a daily meeting to identify and provide extra support aimed at reducing the number of lower-level referrals from escalating.
At the time of our visits to both MASH offices there were no outstanding referrals at either location.
This is an improvement from the findings of our last inspection.
Wiltshire Police is good at managing offenders and suspects.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force manages offenders and suspects.
Wiltshire Police has improved its governance of outstanding suspects and wanted people. There is strong senior leader oversight that tracks progress through performance management boards. The force uses the Cambridge Harm Index risk‑assessment tool from the Institute of Criminology to identify outstanding suspects who pose the most risk. The force holds daily management meetings that monitor how it pursues suspects. The most wanted are circulated on a regularly refreshed top ten priority list. During our inspection we found that local teams were regularly tasked to arrest outstanding offenders, focusing on the top ten priority list. And officers are tasked with specific duties dedicated to finding and arresting those who present the highest risk. This helps to make sure the force safeguards victims at the earliest possible opportunity.
In our victim service assessment we found that arrests were made promptly in 49 of the 51 relevant cases reviewed.
Since our last inspection, the force has made significant changes to the way it approaches the management of sex offenders and violent offenders.
Governance processes are now clear for personnel who are responsible for controlling these most dangerous offenders. A detective inspector oversees the performance of the management of sexual or violent offenders (MOSOVO) team. The force head of vulnerability regularly holds meetings with this inspector to scrutinise performance. Chief officers then have ultimate oversight at various force-level boards. These processes are supported by good quantitative data collected to monitor and inform force’s activity. However, the force hasn’t implemented a performance framework for MOSOVO. Once this is in place it will improve personnel’s access to data on risk management and help reduce any backlogs. These are both important in safeguarding the public.
The force uses a nationally recognised risk-assessment tool for managing registered sex offenders. The use of pre-visit checklists and risk management plan templates help offender managers structure their visits. The force told us that it monitors registered sex offenders through offender managers at an acceptable ratio of 55 to one.
We found that almost all visits to registered sex offenders are now carried out by an accompanied offender manager. This is recognised best practice. It supports officer and staff safety, helps the force to identify any offences, and reduces the risk of offenders manipulating offender managers.
The force is making good use of technology to monitor and manage registered sex offenders. And we found that the force works effectively with the probation service to jointly manage risk.
The force doesn’t widely use sexual risk orders. However, the force has appointed a dedicated civil order solicitor to support officers in applying for civil orders.
Wiltshire Police has a dedicated child internet exploitation team that works with partner organisations to reduce the risk of harm to children. We found evidence that early communication takes place with children’s services. Ongoing contact with children’s services during investigations includes child internet exploitation team officers attending strategy meetings and working with children’s services around bail conditions. This joint approach helps safeguard children from further harm.
The team is proactive in arresting suspects. This has resulted in a minimal backlog of cases. This team also uses technology effectively.
The National Crime Agency has a backlog of cases awaiting referral to forces nationally. Wiltshire Police monitors this regularly and is confident it has sufficient capacity to deal with these cases when it receives them.
We were pleased to find the child internet exploitation team and the MOSOVO team sharing their staff, tactics and technologies with each other and local officers, to identify suspects, obtain evidence of offences, and apprehend high-risk suspects and offenders.
Wiltshire Police is adequate at building, supporting and protecting the workforce.
‘We Rise’ is a six-month development and confidence building programme for members of under-represented groups who show potential to develop within the force.
The programme gives participants an opportunity to develop and connect with members of other under-represented groups. External mentors are appointed to support people on the programme. Individuals attend a monthly course to build competence, confidence and knowledge. Modules include skills development, a community project and external attachments.
During inspection we observed sub-groups sharing their experience of completing various community projects. There was obvious benefit to ‘We Rise’ members through increased confidence in completing the project and presenting their findings. We also saw seldom heard groups experiencing positive communication with police officers and staff. And in one case the sub-group had provided a session on job application skills to a group of young people at a homeless shelter. This was based on a vacancy in the force control room. The subsequent positive feedback from the shelter staff and residents was a powerful indication of the potential of this programme beyond the benefit to the participants.
The force anticipates this programme will:
During our inspection we found inconsistencies in staffing levels within investigative departments. A lack of capacity in some teams has affected staff and officer well-being and their ability to investigate crime. Not only does this affect the workforce within these departments, but also the service given to the public. Senior leaders told us they will resolve this when they implement part two of the new operating model (TOM 2) in summer 2024.
All officers and staff should have development discussions with their line managers. These discussions should form part of the professional development review process and be recorded on the force professional development review (PDR) IT system.
The completion rate for the force PDR was 59 percent in the year ending 31 March 2023.
We carried out a workforce survey from 6 November to 4 December 2023. We received 580 responses, which is an estimated 23.3 percent of the workforce. The survey results showed that of those who completed the PDR, 47.2 percent agreed it was an effective tool in their development. Only 58 percent agreed that they value the process. During our fieldwork, most officers told us that the PDR process was ineffective.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to how well the force builds, supports and protects the workforce.
The occupational health unit (OHU) considers the psychological exposure to risk to the well-being of members of 90 force teams. The unit uses a risk matrix to identify high-risk roles and then prioritises well-being support accordingly. This results in personal intervention plans at three to six months, yearly or two yearly. The OHU carries out risk assessment-based medicals and uses psychological screening questionnaires to assess risk to individuals. Police Care UK provides an intensive trauma programme when the force requests specialist support for an officer or staff member.
The force recognised that vacancies within the OHU would make it difficult to continue providing an effective enhanced support package. So the force is recruiting more permanent and temporary staff to address this.
Wiltshire Police has a well-established process for post-incident support. A seven‑point plan led by supervisors helps personnel who are assaulted at work. Trauma Risk Management (TRiM) practitioners support officers and staff who experience traumatic incidents. But the force should make sure it has enough trained TRiM practitioners to meet the demand for this service.
The force has an officer assault task force that monitors all assaults on its workforce. It identifies trends and themes of officer assaults. We were provided with an example of the task force identifying one response team who were experiencing high levels of assault. The task force researched the team and found that a high number of its officers were recruited during the COVID-19 lockdown and had received comparatively less face-to-face relevant training than other teams. The task force arranged for this team to receive additional training. And the force moved some officers to spread the level of experience. This reduced the number of assaults.
The force has measures in place to retain new recruits and is developing a better understanding of why some recruits choose to leave.
The force has adopted a supportive approach to student officers. It works with internal departments and the university to identify and overcome challenges around academic study. This includes providing development opportunities to help them gather evidence for their occupational competency portfolios. The force also makes buddy systems, mentoring and flexible working available to new recruits. But we found that 77.3 percent of new recruits who responded to the PEEL workforce survey didn’t have either a mentor or a buddy.
We found that the force was proactive in providing technical support to individuals who are neurodivergent. The force also provides coping strategy sessions through occupational health. Two officers reported a positive experience during initial training when force trainers identified they had dyslexia and assistance was provided to help them in their roles.
The force has introduced exit interviews to understand why officers and staff leave. We found it is using the insights gained to help retention. The positive action team contacts leavers from under-represented groups to find any additional reasons to those given in their exit interview. The force is also holding retention interviews with teams that have high and low retention figures.
Wiltshire Police has a broad range of personnel support networks. It carries out equality, diversity and inclusion work with these networks to understand what barriers to development and progression their members face.
The force has a positive action plan. The force gave us examples of how the plan has promoted policy change, including working with the transgender community and personnel, to reduce discrimination. The force has introduced an internal podcast with the LGBTQ+ network to offer insight on the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ officers.
Wiltshire Police has a strategic workforce assessment. This identified the need for more female and minority group representation at higher ranks and within specialisms. The force commissioned a suitable programme for inspector rank and below from the company Dream and Leap. This provider and the relevant network chair worked together to create the bespoke content. During our inspection we also found that superintendents mentor people from lower ranks.
However, Wiltshire Police has insufficient data to help progress its plans to support under-represented groups. An example of this is a lack of ethnicity data from its workforce when new recruits decline to state their ethnicity. The force should explain to individuals how it uses this information and encourage them to disclose their ethnicity. Then the force will have a better understanding of the diversity of the workforce.
Data does show that the force is promoting more men than women with 76.92 percent of all officer promotions for 2022/23 being male. The force should continue to provide equal opportunity for all officers and staff to develop and achieve their full potential.
Wiltshire Police responded effectively to its 2023 force personnel survey. The chief constable promptly shared the results of this survey and gave an assurance that areas of concern would be dealt with. The force created an organisational action plan to respond directly to the points raised and formed an internal advisory group to identify opportunities for cultural change. We saw that one action on the plan had resulted in removing restrictions on secondment opportunities in the force control room.
The police federation, union and staff networks all told us that they had good access to senior leaders, who listened effectively to the views of their members.
Wiltshire Police’s leadership and management is adequate.
The force has access to a wide range of performance data. But we found that it is missing some important information. This prevents the force from having a full understanding of some demands. Nor does it have confidence that it makes strategic decisions with all the information that it needs to make sure they are effective.
For example, we found that the force doesn’t have access to some partnership data, such as information from the NHS. So it doesn’t understand some sources of demand. This has an effect on how well it manages and responds to these demands. This also affects how well the force can work with its partners to provide joint services. The force must improve the data sharing process so it can meet the needs of its communities now and in the future.
During our PEEL 2020/21 inspection, we found the force didn’t have an effective understanding about the skills of its workforce. During this inspection we found this still to be the case, despite the force’s plans to create a skills database. It had made little progress and still doesn’t fully understand the capability and capacity of its workforce. This had an effect when the force introduced a new operating model for its response teams. As part of those changes, the force needed to make sure it allocated resources where they were most needed. But the force couldn’t assure itself it had the right distribution of skills within its new operating model. This led to some gaps in capability. The force should make sure it has access to this data and that it is consistently used before it makes workforce decisions.
Since our last inspection, the force has rapidly introduced organisational changes to help it provide a better service to its communities. The force has made substantial progress, but it now needs to make sure it properly trains and supports its workforce so that officers and staff can contribute effectively to further improvements.
For example, some senior leaders told us there is a disconnect between them and chief officers. The force reintroduced the ranks of chief inspector and chief superintendent to help it improve performance. But it did this without providing adequate training and support to those affected. As a result, some senior leaders are unclear of what is expected of them. This has led to some confusion and a lack of trust and confidence. In some cases, leaders work excessive hours in response to the uncertainty they have about their position in the organisation.
Police leadership is a crucial factor that helps a force to perform well and to be effective and efficient. The force needs to make sure it offers appropriate leadership training, improves communication and takes steps to distribute demands more evenly. This will improve leadership effectiveness across the organisation by increasing capacity to perform well and improve work-life balance.
In this section we set out our main findings that relate to leadership and management.
The force has created a strategic Plan on a Page 2023/24. This plan considers the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Police and Crime Plan 2022–25 and clearly communicates the force’s priorities to the workforce. The force has also created separate versions of the plan specific to each department. This helps the workforce understand what is expected from them and how to contribute towards achieving force priorities.
The force has reviewed and changed its reporting and governance structures. We found that senior leaders were making better use of the data available to them and had a clearer oversight of force performance. They used data effectively to task and co-ordinate resources through daily management meetings. This helps the force to operate effectively and meet the needs of its communities.
We also found the force was making good use of its force management statement. This document sets out the chief constable’s self-assessment of current and future demands, the plans it has to meet them and how it will manage any identified risks. The force now has appropriate strategic plans and is using them as an integral part of its operational planning processes.
Wiltshire Police recently introduced its new ‘leadership for all’ strategy 2024/25. This document clearly sets out the force’s expectations and its plans to provide leaders at all levels with the necessary skills and capabilities to be effective. The force has developed individual training programmes that are specific to each level of leader. This will give its leaders the knowledge and skills they need to be effective.
The force has started to provide the new leadership programme for first-line leaders. This also includes separate training for acting supervisors and those who are already promoted. While the force hasn’t started to provide training to more senior levels of leadership yet, it has clear plans in place.
We were also told by the workforce that chief officers were very visible and engaging. The workforce also commented positively about senior leaders who were creating a positive workplace environment through effective communication and being supportive. But they also told us that the number of senior leaders changing roles frequently made this more difficult. Wiltshire Police should take steps to provide more consistent leadership.
The force has reviewed and introduced a new target operating model to help it to respond more effectively to current and future demand. The first phase of this new operating model (TOM 1) was in place at the time of our inspection. The force used the available data effectively to help it understand current demands. It then used that information to design the new operating model. The result was that it can meet its priorities now and in the future.
But we were told the force is still working on some of its processes to make sure they are effective. For example, the systems to make sure the force gives crimes to appropriately skilled personnel and the right units aren’t always effective. This can lead to confusion over who is responsible for them. To address these issues, the force has plans to introduce a new operating model (TOM 2) for its investigative teams later this year. And the force is recruiting for a new crime allocation team.
However, the force needs to prioritise work that removes sources of internal demand through continual improvement. For example, the force has 19 percent of its police officers working in administrative roles. This is higher than the average of 15 percent across forces in England and Wales. Greater use of technology to automate manual processes could replace some repetitive and time-consuming tasks. This would improve efficiency and increase workforce capacity in operational roles. This would help meet current and future demands more effectively.
The force isn’t currently making the most of the available technology that could improve efficiency and increase productivity. The force currently lacks the capacity for continual improvement, which is restricting progress. Wiltshire Police told us that it has invested extra resources in its ICT department. This will help to address some internal demands where technology can make processes more efficient.
For example, replacing manual repetitive tasks that are time-consuming with robotic process automation could make some processes more efficient. This would help Wiltshire Police to meet current demands. The time saved by the use of robotic process automation would allow the officers and staff to focus on more important tasks. This would help the force to further improve performance.
The force displays an effective approach to financial management. The forecasts within the medium-term financial plan are based on realistic assumptions about future funding and planned expenditure.
In the year ending 31 March 2023, Wiltshire Police received £157m in funding. In line with other forces in England and Wales, the force receives a combination of core grant from central government and local revenue. This is raised through council tax precept and contributed £65m to the force’s total budget. This made up about 41 percent of the force’s total funding, which is at the higher end of the normal range that forces receive from precept.
The force received help from a maximum increase in precept for 2023/24. The increase was £15 per band D property. This was allocated to recruit an extra 32 officers and maintain services. Capital expenditure for 2023/24 amounted to £15m, which the force used to invest in IT, to improve the force buildings and for vehicle fleet replacement. The force uses its reserves sensibly, but because it needs to invest in improving services, it has drawn frequently on them. The force holds general reserves in the region of £3.4m, which is adequate.
Data in this report comes from a range of sources, including:
For any charts and tables included in this report, we have listed the data source underneath.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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:
Wiltshire PEEL assessment 2023–2025
You can find more about Wiltshire Police on our dedicated force page.
Wiltshire covers a varied but mainly rural geographic area, including flourishing market villages, and strong industrial towns.
Wiltshire Police is proud to be a values-based organisation, which it uses to provide the best possible service.
Wiltshire Police has made efforts to improve, but some concerns remain
Find out more about HMICFRS’s work and other inspection areas.
Find out how well other forces have performed during their PEEL assessment.
You can view the recommendations for all forces made by HMICFRS on our Progress against recommendations page. This shows how much progress has been made on these recommendations.
