PEEL Assessment 2023-25: West Midlands Police

The force needs to make sure that its multi-agency risk assessment conferences work effectively to keep vulnerable people safe A multi-agency risk assessment conference (MARAC) is a locally held meeting where information is shared by representatives from agencies who support people at high risk of domestic abuse. Eight MARACs meet regularly across the force’s seven local policing areas. These are supported by co-ordinators. The MARACs have arrangements for sharing information, along with an operating protocol and a performance and quality framework. An operational group reviews their performance and reports to a strategic domestic abuse board that is linked to various partnership meetings. However, we found that these management processes and structures aren’t effective. Excessive and inappropriate demand means people might not be safeguarded promptly. We learned that, in September 2023, there was a six to eight-week backlog of high-risk cases for discussion at MARAC. There are delays between referrals being received, triage and decision-making. And because details of cases are only released to partner agencies five days before each MARAC meeting, some agencies may be unaware of a case for several weeks. The force is aware of this risk, but urgent measures are needed to manage this demand.

The force doesn’t manage the risk posed to the public by registered sex offenders effectively The force’s management of sex offenders complies with some of the authorised professional practice. But it has significant problems which inhibit its ability to minimise the risks posed by these offenders. We have highlighted some of these problems, including the workloads of sex offender managers, in previous inspection reports. The force uses active risk management system (ARMS) assessments to assess risk factors associated with sexual re-offending. These are important because they support the effective management of sex offenders. But we found that many were overdue. The force didn’t have enough data to understand the level of risk in cases where ARMS assessments and home visits were overdue. The force told us that in May 2023 it had 276 cases with outstanding ARMS assessments. We were told that the technology sex offender managers use to detect further offending is unsuitable. Some are reluctant to use it because they don’t understand it and think it would create more work. Some wanted more support from the digital forensics unit in assessing and prioritising digital devices for specialist examination. These factors were affecting their morale and well-being. Since our inspection, the force has responded quickly by implementing an improvement plan to address demand, welfare and training. This plan is reviewed monthly by the deputy chief constable and other senior leaders. The force told us that it has moved the management of sex offender manager teams to its public protection unit. It is updating its performance management process to give it a clearer understanding of risk and demand. And it has assessed the well-being support it offers to sex offender managers. These are positive steps and we will monitor the force’s progress closely.

The force doesn’t manage the risk posed by online child abuse offenders effectively During our inspection, we examined the work of the online child sexual exploitation team (OCSET). This team is responsible for detecting offenders who access indecent images of children online and for putting safeguarding measures in place. We noted that the force had adapted a tool called KIRAT to accurately assess the risks posed by suspects who view indecent images of children online. And it was using child protection software frequently. This is positive. But we found significant shortcomings in the force’s approach. The force supplied data about the number of cases referred to OCSET for investigation. The force told us that since 2018 the number of referrals has doubled, but the force hasn’t allocated any more staff to handle them, despite anticipating that demand would grow. The force told us that this led to a backlog of 81 outstanding cases by May 2023. It wasn’t reassessing risks in the backlog after a certain amount of time had passed to see if suspects’ circumstances had changed and if it should reprioritise any cases. We found that some of the working practices of the digital forensic unit (DFU) were preventing investigators from submitting devices promptly for examination. And the force wasn’t making enough use of the Child Abuse Image Database, which brings together all the images found by the police and the National Crime Agency. The Child Abuse Image Database supports the investigation and prosecution of offenders and the identification of victims. The force uses consent searches and voluntary attendance more often than warrants and arrest powers. The force told us that in 2022, 230 cases out of 400 were enforced without the use of warrants. We did find the force prioritised arrests in cases where the suspect lives with a child or is in a position of trust, but relying on consent to search in other circumstances means that evidential or safeguarding opportunities might be missed. We found that referrals to social services weren’t being made as soon as a suspect is believed to be having contact with a child. This prevents the use of early safeguarding and prolongs the risk of the child experiencing abuse. The force has implemented an improvement plan, which we refer to earlier in this report. This plan is comprehensive and reviewed regularly. The force has assessed the demand faced by OCSET and allocated more resources to it based on its projection of demand over the next three years. The force told us that the number of outstanding cases had reduced to 21 by 17 August 2023, and staff told us their well-being was better supported. All OCSET officers wear body-worn video when attending scenes, which means they can live-stream footage to the DFU, who provide advice. The force participated in a trial scheme to share information with Birmingham City Council’s Public Health epartment to make sure children are safeguarded quickly. This approach has now been expanded to all the West Midlands local authority areas. Significant investment in the DFU means more staff are available to give support to investigators, including specialist digital/cyber vehicles that attend warrants. During fieldwork, we saw how the force uses cloud technology to manage data more efficiently and how different digital tools are being assessed for their effectiveness at detecting offences. These steps are notable and we look forward to learning of their outcomes as we monitor the force’s progress.

The force needs to make sure it carries out effective investigations which lead to satisfactory results for victims We found that the force hasn’t made enough progress in improving the standard of its investigations since our last PEEL inspection. As a result, not enough offenders are being brought to justice. We acknowledge the force does a good job of investigating many of the most serious crimes. But in our crime file review, we judged that only 54 of 100 investigations were effective. This is concerning. During our inspection, officers and staff told us that they were frequently allocated crimes for which they didn’t have sufficient skills or experience. This meant they couldn’t achieve the right outcomes for victims. These investigations included some of the most serious crimes. In our victim service assessment, we found that 40 out of 72 cases had investigation plans. Investigation plans, outlined in the College of Policing’s authorised professional practice, support investigators to make sure they make the most of all available opportunities to gather evidence. We only found evidence of effective supervision in 36 of 82 cases we reviewed. We were told that supervisors didn’t have the skills or capacity to supervise and review investigations properly, due to a lack of guidance and up-to-date training. Supervisors told us they were carrying large caseloads of crimes as there weren’t enough skilled investigators available. Accordingly, the force isn’t always achieving acceptable outcomes for victims of crime. The number of crimes that are solved following investigations is low. The force needs to understand the issue and work to achieve better outcomes for victims. In the year ending 31 March 2023, West Midlands Police recorded 312,084 victim-based crimes. Of these recorded offences, only 3.6 percent were assigned an ‘offences brought to justice’ outcome. This is significantly lower than expected compared to other forces in England and Wales. Between the year ending 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023, the proportion of victim-based crimes assigned outcome 1 , ‘evidential difficulties (suspect not identified but the victim declines or is unable to support)’, increased from 8.1 percent to 9.0 percent. This value is higher than expected compared to other forces in England and Wales. When cases were finalised, the correct outcome wasn’t always applied. ictims’ views weren’t always taken into account, and some investigations were closed inappropriately without victims being informed. Investigators should involve victims when decisions are made, update them about the decision and, where applicable, explain it to them. We found the force didn’t routinely audit and scrutinise the outcomes assigned to cases. This means leaders can’t be confident that they understand what drives some outcomes, whether the outcomes are appropriate and what improvements might be needed to give victims better justice.