Crime-recording: making the victim count
Summary
In its 2013/14 inspection programme, approved by the Home Secretary under section 54 of the Police Act 1996, HMIC committed to carry out an inspection into the way the 43 police forces in England and Wales record crime data.
HMIC examined and assessed the integrity of crime data in each force. We focused our examination around three broad themes: leadership and governance; systems and processes; and the people and skills involved. We looked at how each force applies the standards and rules for crime-recording laid down by the Home Office; how police culture and behaviours affect recording; how victims of crime are being served by police crime recording practices; and how the police use out-of-court solutions such as cautions, cannabis warnings, community resolutions and penalty notices for disorder when dealing with offenders.
This inspection, carried out between February and August 2014, is the most extensive of its kind that HMIC has ever undertaken into crime data integrity. This is the final report of that inspection.
Get the report
Crime-recording: making the victim count (PDF document)
Get the literature review
Crime data integrity literature review (PDF document)
Get the force reports
Crime data integrity force reports
Get the press release
Press release for Crime-recording: making the victim count
Get the police and crime commissioners’ responses to the report
Cheshire police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Cumbria police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Dorset police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Essex police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Humberside police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Lancashire police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Merseyside police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Staffordshire police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Warwickshire police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
West Mercia police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’
Wiltshire police and crime commissioner’s response to ‘Crime recording: making the victim count’