Performance and Measurement

Summary

Dorset receives a significant number of day visitors and more than 19,000,000 overnight visitors each year in addition to the 710,000 resident population. The force has consistently received ‘Good’ ratings in the Audit Commission’s annual review of resource use. The force has two overarching strategic objectives – to make Dorset safer and to make Dorset feel safer. Meeting the needs and expectations of the public is key to all priorities, and central to this is Neighbourhood Policing. In 2007/8, safer neighbourhood teams were rolled out across the area. Dorset is working with 4 other forces within South West England to collaborate on service delivery to save money and further improve service delivery and continues to build on existing collaborative arrangements with Hampshire Constabulary and other partners.

In the recent HMIC inspections, the force has been graded as exceeding the standard for developing citizen focus policing and meeting the standard for major crime and neighbourhood policing. Dorset Police enjoys one of the highest levels of public confidence nationally, with 63.8% of people surveyed by the British Crime Survey feeling Dorset Police did an excellent or good job. Dorset also compares well with peers for satisfaction ratings for the whole experience, as public confidence increased following contact with the force.

During 2007/08, overall crime decreased by 7.0%, resulting in the lowest level of crime in Dorset for 5 years, and lower in terms of crimes per 1,000 residents than its peer group average. The force surpassed its targets for reducing crime and for bringing offences to justice. Substantial reductions have been achieved in vehicle crime (down 13.3%) and violent crime (down 5.0%), including greater reductions in more serious violent crime offences. Gun and knife crime rates are very low, with numbers of incidents falling further in 2007/08.

The force set several local priorities for 2007/08 in relation to contact management and visibility to the public. Contact management performance has improved in all areas, with 91.5% of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds and 96.5% of calls to the switchboard answered within 30 seconds. Police officer time spent on frontline duties increased to 71.4%, one of the highest levels nationally, and community support officers’ time on visible patrol in the community increased to 68.8%.

In 2007, Dorset undertook a successful security operation for the Labour party conference in Bournemouth, involving more than 400 police officers and 140 police staff – around a quarter of the entire staff strength. Careful planning and measures such as rest day and training cancellation minimised the impact on policing in the rest of Dorset and, in accordance with national practice, the operation was funded entirely by a Home Office special grant. In the coming years, the force will be called upon to police security at the 2012 Olympic sailing event and the precursor sailing events leading up to it. This will draw on the force’s experience of policing party conferences but will also provide new challenges. Dorset Police is committed to ensuring that resources for policing the rest of the force area are not deflected to the operation. The timely roll-out of the force strategic change programme - Dorset 2010 - will be paramount in enabling full concentration on the 2012 Games and other significant events, as well as maintaining and improving normal services. The force and Police Authority recognise the financial challenges over the next few years. To meet them, they are increasing focus on improving levels of productivity and providing protective services and Neighbourhood Policing.