Chief constable welcomes latest HMICFRS inspection report

In May last year the inspectorate also issued the force with an accelerated cause of concern relating to crime recording standards, but in June 2022 it confirmed that Dyfed-Powys Police had made good progress, had improved in almost all aspects of crime recording and the cause of concern was discharged.

When Chief Constable Dr Richard Lewis took up his post in December of last year, he committed to ensuring that the force would provide a service to the standard that the workforce would want for their loved ones should they ever need them.

And the report is encouraging, with improvements noted by increasing grades in four areas of assessment.

Dr Lewis said: “No one likes to hear that they should be doing better, especially an organisation whose primary function is to safeguard those that need us most.

“I’m delighted to say that the cause of concern has been written off after we’ve been able to evidence substantial improvements and in rapid time.

“And the publication of this fuller report today is encouraging, with improvements noted in four areas of assessment namely – victim service, crime data integrity, the investigation of crime, and the managing of offenders. This marks a significant improvement in the service we provide.

“We are now monitoring our performance on a daily, weekly and monthly basis and we’ve been doing this for several months. This places us on a positive trajectory which is reflected in today’s report.”

He added: “Our quest at Heddlu Dyfed-Powys Police is to continuously improve, to be better today than we were yesterday, and better tomorrow than today.

“Working like this with a continuous improvement mindset is a sustainable and sensible approach and has already borne significant fruit.”

One of the areas he is proud of the operational improvements made at the force is stop and search. By setting a vision to continuously improve, as opposed to setting arbitrary targets, the force has seen stop and search increase by 71 per cent for the past six months, set against last year’s numbers – resulting in taking more drugs and weapons off our streets to keep our children safe.

Dr Lewis said: “However, we are not complacent and will not stop to celebrate the improvements contained in this report.

“But instead focus on our desire to further improve in areas set out by the inspectorate and the crucial feedback from our communities, which is of equal value, if not more than that of the inspectorate.

“My thanks go to the commissioner, Dafydd Llywelyn for his support and the hard work of our incredible staff, officers and volunteers at Heddlu Dyfed-Powys Police who work tirelessly every day. It is their work that has been realised in these improvements.

“I’d encourage you to read the full report for the detail, and there remains much to be done. But I look forward as the chief constable here to seeing Dyfed-Powys play its full part in sustaining and creating strong and resilient communities in Mid and West Wales over the years to come.”