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September 2002 |
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CHIEF CONSTABLES ANNUAL REPORT
AND PUBLIC PERFORMANCE REPORT 2001/2 Police strength has also increased to a record 683 officers to cover the biggest beat in Great Britain which now has 15 more officers than in 2000/2001. Figures to September 2002 show a further rise bringing the current total to 697. Support staff also increased by 16 releasing more officers for street patrols in the continuing fight against crime. Northern Constabulary has also
continued to invest heavily in new buildings, spending an estimated #2.7m
demonstrating its commitment to sustaining a presence in geographically
diverse communities with a significant investment being made in ongoing
capital projects at Other statistics from the Report
include: Continued enforcement our roads, whilst reducing overall fatal and serious accidents, showed an increase in road traffic offences of 1710. Northern Constabulary Chief Constable Ian Latimer said today, I am delighted that in presenting my first Public Performance Report as Chief Constable of Northern Constabulary I can state that the detection rate for the Force is the highest in Scotland at 65% and with a record 100% clear up rate for serious crime the Force can feel justifiably proud of its achievements. However, Class 1-5 crimes did show a slight rise of 5.5% (an increase of 748 crimes) but is nevertheless outstripped by our increased detection rate. Our positive response to the issue of drugs saw us concentrating on targeting dealers and suppliers with more specifically aimed operations. This pro-activity coupled with our continuing partnership with organisations such as SDEA and NCIS ensured that common links in other major towns and cities in Scotland and the North of England were targeted resulting in successful seizures. Offences by young people rose by 22.1% (from 2096 to 2559) however our figures show that of approx 82,700 young people in our Force area, only 1892 offended which represents only 2.3% of the youth population. This figure clearly shows that diversion packages are effective and the latest youth strategy that the Force has promoted in collaboration with its partners indicates that the majority of young people are not being lured into the spiral of crime so often seen in other areas of the country. Such positive steps with our partner agencies ensure constructive intervention with the majority of young repeat offenders. Local partnerships throughout the Force from the recent CCTV launch in Thurso, and the street worker projects in Fort William demonstrates how the Force is developing community ownership of crime and promoting its community safety strategies throughout the Highlands and Islands. Finally, in keeping with the
Governments commitment to reducing street crime in all cities and towns
throughout the United Kingdom, Northern Constabulary has been tackling
this at source in Inverness with the Thumbprint Scheme that has shown Whilst serious crime in the Force remains low, these street crimes are the ones that affect people every day, and if we can continue to tackle this type of crime, if the thief cannot steal the bag, he cannot use the card, he cannot cause the distress that affects people the entire length and breadth of the Northern Constabulary area when they become the victims of crime. I wish to place on record my thanks to the Northern Joint Police Board for its continuing investment in the Force in both capital projects and human resources, to the officers and support staff for their continued commitment in crime reduction and to the people of the Highlands and Islands who provide the necessary support and assistance to officers in the towns and communities throughout the Force area.
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Extract From 2001/2002 Annual Report -
Caithness and Sutherland ACHIEVEMENTS AGAINST OUR PRIORITIES FOR 2001/2002 1. To raise our profile in road safety and traffic management At the start of the year we made positive commitment to address public concerns relating to Road Safety in the Area Command. Whilst it is, sadly, unrealistic to hope to reduce fatalities to nil in a short time scale, we analysed the cause of such serious and fatal factors in such accidents. We have concentrated on these areas and have frequently called upon the Force Road Policing Unit for assistance as well as devoting local resources to road patrols, including, whenever possible, a dedicated unit in the area. During the period under review, we
have detected We are now experiencing a notable decrease in serious road traffic accidents and we will continue our efforts. Education also plays a major part in our strategy with regular newspaper road safety bulletins, a young driver referral programme in partnership with the courts and positive inputs to advanced driving and other training courses. 2. To combat drug abuse Full Report Available in pdf format on northern constabulary web site |
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