Fewer than five rapes or personal thefts per 1,000 offences solved in some forces, Home Office data reveals

Ministers have been urged to get a grip on poorly-performing police forces, as it emerged some are solving less than five rapes or personal thefts per 1,000 crimes.

Victims of rape and theft are 14 times less likely to get justice in the lowest-ranked forces than in the best-performing.

In Suffolk, just five in 1,000 rape offences resulted in a charge or other sanction, according to The Daily Telegraph analysis of Home Office data for the year ending March 2020.

That compared with 68 rapes per 1,000 in Durham, which was consistently in the top five along with North and South Wales police forces.

Just three out of 1,000 personal thefts were solved in North Yorkshire, compared with 48 in Dyfed-Powys, both largely rural police forces.

Dame Vera Baird, the Victims’ Commissioner, said the wide variations and “disappointingly low” clear-up rates in rape, sexual crimes, theft and burglary were “worrying” and would encourage many opportunistic offenders to “sense that they are able to re-offend without fear of being punished.”

“I recognise reasons behind these variations will be varied and complex. But these figures suggest we have a postcode lottery, both for victims seeking justice and for offenders and their likelihood of being brought to justice,” she said.

“We need to understand the reasons behind these variations and there needs to be a concerted drive to improve those forces consistently lagging behind.”

Rick Muir, head of the police foundation which is conducting a strategic review into policing in the UK, said that there had been a “loss of focus” on solving crimes in face of cuts in policing.

“There has been an emphasis on managing demand and less on focusing on performance. Now is the time when we are getting more resources to look at how successful police forces are at achieving the outcomes that the public expect,” he said.

“There are disparities here that need explaining. We need to shine a light on it. There are some forces that have a case to answer.”

Kent had the lowest rate for sexual offences with just 28 per 1000 resulting in a charge, out of court disposal, offence taken into consideration or other sanction, compared with North Yorkshire’s 125 per 1,000 and North and South Wales with 118 per 1,000 and 115 per 1,000 respectively.

Kent was also the lowest for criminal damage (at 47 per 1,000 offences), for public order (at 63 per 1,000) and for violence with injury offences (at 75 per 1,000 offences).

This compared with the highest performers Norfolk for criminal damage (at 130 per 1,000 offences), North Yorkshire for public order (at 319 per 1,000) and South Wales for violence (at 293 per 1,000)

For robbery Wiltshire had the lowest rate at 49 per 1,000, while Durham had the best at 257 per 1,000. Durham was alsto top for burglary at 93 solved per 1,000 compared with just 17 per 1,000 in Greater Manchester.

Assistant Chief Constable Peter Ayling said: ‘Kent Police is committed to providing the best possible service to all victims and as a force we are not driven by meeting targets, but instead focus on meeting the needs of the victim and ensuring they are safeguarded.

“We follow strict national guidelines when recording and investigating crime and it is important to remember that a charge is one of 21 possible outcomes for an investigation.

"There will always be cases where victims want intervention, not necessarily prosecution such as domestic abuse, modern slavery and low value thefts but regardless of the outcome of a case victims are always safeguarded and signposted to the appropriate support depending on their needs.

"As the only force that has been graded as outstanding for four consecutive years by the independent policing inspectorate for the way it treats the public and for its accuracy in crime data integrity, the public can have confidence that victims are put at the heart of everything we do and that crime recorded by the force is done accurately.

"When a victim contacts Kent Police to report a crime, several processes begin and these can include offering advice and support, putting in place safeguarding measures as well as commencing an investigation. We will always listen to the victim and when it is not in their best interest to attend court, we will explore more suitable outcomes.

"With many rape or sexual offence cases we recognise that the predominant reason why an investigation concludes is because the victim does not support a prosecution or withdraws their support. If a victim makes this decision, we will work with them to ensure they are making an informed choice in the knowledge they will receive the full support of Kent Police if they wish to progress an investigation."

Criminologist Lawrence Sherman, a professor at Cambridge University, said part of the explanation lay in the social and geographical profile of areas, contrasting the tightly knit community in Durham where police had built relations over time with highly mobile, more diverse communities.

Jo Farrell, Chief Constable of Durham, said: “Solved rates are an indication of the effectiveness of a police force which, in turn, is an indicator of public confidence.

“We continuously work to increase the rate at which we solve crimes and improve the service we offer both to the public in general and to victims in particular.

“Our officers put victim satisfaction at the heart of everything we do, so we prioritise those ‘high harm’ offences which have the greatest impact on victims and there is accountability at all levels to ensure we live up to that commitment.

“We also place high value on continuous professional development at all ranks and at all times so we can achieve permanent improvement.

“Operating in a digital world generates new opportunities to gather evidence, provided we have the required skillset within the force”.

Percentage of victims brought to justice (including those charged, offences taken into consideration, out of court disposal or education programmes)

Lowest and highest rates for each crime type below

Rape

Suffolk 0.5% N Wales 0.9% Avon and Somerset 0.9% Kent 1.1% Hampshire 1.1%

Durham 6.8% S Wales 4.9% Gloucestershire 4.1% Northumbria 3.7% Cumbria 3.6%

Burglary

Greater Manchester 1.7% Surrey 2.4% Met Police 2.5% N Yorkshire 2.5% Derbyshire 2.6%

Durham 9.3% Northumbria 9.1% Devon and Cornwall 9.1% N Wales 8.5%

Robbery

Wiltshire 4.9% The Met 5.3% Greater Manchester 6% Northants 6.4% Kent 6.9%

Durham 25.7% N Wales 21.7% S Wales 21.3% Lincolnshire 21.2% Cleveland 18.6%

Other sexual offences

Kent 2.8% Warwickshire 3.9% W Yorkshire 4.2% Northants 4.7% Wiltshire 5%

N Yorkshire 12.5% N Wales 11.8% S Wales 11.5% Lancashire 8.4% Dyfed Powys 8.4%

Criminal damage

Kent 4.7% Manchester 5.6% Cleveland 5.8% Thames Valley 6.2% Hertfordshire 6.3%

Norfolk 13% Durham 12.8% Derbyshire 12.8% S Wales 12.3% Dyfed Powys 11.8% Humberside 11.3%

Public Order

Kent 6.3% Cheshire 7.4% Greater Manchester 7.8% Sussex 8% W Yorks 8%

N Yoirkshire 31.9% Staffordshire 21.9% Dorset 20.1% Durham 19.3% W Mercia 18.8%

Robbery

Wiltshire 4.9% The Met 5.3% Greater Manchester 6% Northants 6.4% Kent 6.9%

Durham 25.7% N Wales 21.7% S Wales 21.3% Lincolnshire 21.2% Cleveland 18.6%

Theft from a person N Yorkshire 0.3% Gter Manchester 0.4% Met Police 1.1% Sussex 1.1% W Midlands 1.1%

Dyfed Powys 4.8% Staffordshire 4.7% N Wales 4.6% Cheshire 4.5% Wiltshire 4.3%

Violence with injury

Kent 7.5% Gter Manchester 10.2% W Midlands 10.5% W Yorkshire 10.8% Northants 11.5%

S Wales 29.3% N Yorkshire 29% Wiltshire 20.3% Durham 20.1% N Wales 19.9%