Chief’s Annual Report spotlights Force’s continuing progress despite the challenges of policing during a pandemic

Chief Constable Nick Adderley has today (Friday, August 6) published his third annual report focusing on Northamptonshire Police’s performance in the past 12 months and looking ahead as he begins his fourth year in charge.

In his report, Mr Adderley firstly acknowledges just how challenging policing has been during the past 12 months as the public have endured the frustration and uncertainty of lockdown restrictions put in place to combat Covid-19.

Praising the resilience of his officers and staff, he said he was “incredibly proud” of how Northamptonshire Police had responded and worked alongside partner agencies to deliver effective engagement and enforcement.

The Chief points to how the past 12 months have seen really significant progress across a number of key areas, improvements duly recognised by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

It was the Inspectorate’s highly critical report of early 2019 which set the Force, led by the Chief, on its current path to drive up performance and quality of service.

He said: “The challenge for Northamptonshire Police has been significant, however through sheer grit and determination at every level, the quality of our service has improved, and we are now delivering in line with what the public want and expect.”

Among the performance highlights identified in the report are:

• Higher levels of proactive policing which have led to 10,000 additional crimes being identified
• Satisfaction levels at their highest for five years with rates among victims of domestic abuse and burglary now standing at record levels
• Significant and hugely successful efforts to raise awareness among officers around vulnerability and the protection and safeguarding of children in particular
• A review of neighbourhood policing which is putting beat officers back in the heart of communities, increasing visibility and raising public confidence
• A Force with more officers than ever before and on target to have almost 1,500 by 2022-23 and – increasingly - a more diverse workforce, better reflecting the wider Northamptonshire community
• The move to a new base in Wellingborough shared with the Fire Service and the Office for the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, saving money which is being re-invested in the frontline
• Investment in ANPR cameras to deter criminals from our roads and a new Skoda Octavia VRS interceptor fleet to reduce crime, deaths and KSIs on the county’s road network.

The report throws a spotlight too on a number of high-profile operations which have led to the arrest and conviction of serious offenders for crimes ranging from attempted murder to child sex abuse and domestic violence.

And Operation Revive, a targeted campaign to combat violent offending linked to gangs and class A drugs in Wellingborough, is also delivering real results and reassuring people in those communities whose lives were disrupted by violent criminals.

In May, the Chief launched his Matters of Priority, setting out the four crime types which the Force is giving special focus to in the year ahead – serious organised crime, domestic abuse, knife crime and anti-social behaviour.

Looking ahead to the next 12 months, the Chief Constable said his focus would continue to be on improving performance and to invest further in the prevention agenda which aims to reduce demand and free up officers, so policing is even more visible and proactive.

He writes: “We are in a much-improved position today, but we are ambitious, and we have more work to do to be the excellent policing service I know my officers and staff want to achieve as much as I do.”

The report can be found here: https://www.northants.police.uk/SysSiteAssets/media/downloads/northamptonshire/about-us/chief-constables-annual-report-2020_21.pdf