Cleveland Police told they must protect and support vulnerable victims better

The force should improve its investigations of cases involving vulnerable victims, specifically victims of domestic abuse and child sexual exploitation, by ensuring that cases are allocated to officers with the appropriate professional skills and expertise, and ensuring they are effectively supervised.

This was partly because the number of crimes with vulnerable victims is far higher in South Yorkshire than many other places, he acknowledged.

We welcome the recommendations in the report and will continue to embrace these as we work hard to build upon the service we provide.

Inspector Wendy Williams said: “Devon and Cornwall Police generally provides a good service in identifying vulnerable people and responds well to them”.

“An innovative new domestic abuse perpetrator service has been commissioned which works with perpetrators so they better understand the causes and impact of their behaviour and in doing so reduces repeat victimisation”.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) examined all 43 police forces across England and Wales, and found that South Wales, Dyfed-Powys and North Wales Police “required improvement” in at least one area, based on their effectiveness at protecting vulnerable people from harm. We use all the tools and legislation at our disposal to protect victims, manage offenders and tackle this horrendous crime, including Domestic Violence Protection Notices (DVPNs) and Domestic Violence Protection Orders (DVPOs).

“As far as child exploitation is concerned, I am especially pleased that the report recognises the difference these extra resources have made”. It is pleasing for instance to see that in around 70 per cent of domestic abuse cases an early arrest is made, but we do note the small reduction in the number of cases resulting in a charge.

“The inspection has also highlighted some areas for improvement and I will be working with the Chief Constable and other chief officers to ensure that the policing response in Dorset continues to develop and improve”. For me, a crucial step in tackling this awful crime is giving victims the confidence to come forward and seek justice.

“We are committed to providing the best possible service to vulnerable victims of crime”.

“I too am disappointed that the myriad of work undertaken by the force has not been fully recognised and share the concerns of the Deputy Chief Constable that the report may not completely capture the breadth and depth of the very significant work delivered by officers, particularly those in the Signal Team, Multi-Agency CSE Team and Missing Persons Team”. We believe that it is and that we have the right standards and supervision.

In its report published today HMIC found that protecting vulnerable people is a high priority for the force.

“Understanding the scale and nature of the issue is under-developed which means the response to missing children is inconsistent and frontline staff and supervisors do not always identify risk factors associated with missing children and the potential links to child sexual exploitation”.