West Yorkshire Police rated as 'outstanding' as knife and gun crime fall

The force was graded as 'outstanding' for its efficiency and 'good' at reducing crime and keeping people safe, in a report released today.

Yorkshire's largest force was also rated 'good' for the way it treats the public and its workforce, the police watchdog Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Service (HMICFRS) revealed following an earlier inspection.

The force has recently seen reductions in serious and violent crime.

Knife crime has fallen 9.2 per cent since April 2019, while robberies involving knives is down 17.4 per cent and serious violence has fallen by 6.1 per cent.

Violence involving firearms has also seen nearly a 20 per cent reduction

Chief Constable John Robins said the results are "testament" to the hard work of police officers, staff and volunteers at West Yorkshire Police.

He said: "They have done all they can to tackle crime in recent years, whilst the demand upon them has increased in both volume and complexity. I would also like to acknowledge and thank our partners and the public for their joint support to tackle criminality.

The West Yorkshire force was also the first metropolitan force in England and Wales to be rated as 'outstanding' for how it records crime and has also seen 4,200 victims up to the end of December.

HM Inspector of Constabulary Phil Gormley congratulated the force over its "excellent performance".

Inspectors said the force still had some areas for improvement including the quality and supervision of criminal investigations, particularly those involving vulnerable victims.

Mr Gormely also said the force needs to increase its capability and capacity to effectively and proactively counter potential corruption within its workforce.

Mr Robins said: "Whilst we acknowledge and agree with the small number of areas requiring improvement, I would like to reassure the public that we have already taken robust steps to address them. I have been reassured that we have one of the fewest number of recommendations for improvement of any police force in the country. I am committed to continuous improvement and while I am very pleased with today’s grading, my ambition is to improve our performance still further.

“This report is a positive reflection of West Yorkshire Police. Most importantly, it is positive news for the public we serve. We continue to move in the right direction, as we focus on our core roles of reducing crime, protecting the vulnerable and reassuring the public.”