A force to be reckoned with (From York Press)

A force to be reckoned with

7:43am Thursday 26th October 2006 in News By Tom Stirling

NORTH Yorkshire police chiefs have spoken of their pride after receiving a clean bill of health from a Government watchdog.

A report by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary has concluded North Yorkshire Police (NYP) continued to improve - with six out of seven crime-fighting criteria rated as "good".

North Yorkshire's Chief Constable Della Cannings said: "I am proud that NYP is being recognised for the quality of policing it provides to our communities."

Humberside Police, however, fared less well, scoring "fair" in five categories and "poor" in the other two.

For North Yorkshire, Ms Cannings said the force had continued to provide a "first-class policing service", despite "major challenges" including the Mark Hobson manhunt and Royal Ascot at York.

She said: "Once again, crime has fallen and continues to fall. With Neighbourhood Policing being bolstered and developed, with even more new systems and technology, I am confident that NYP will continue to progress and meet future challenges."

Jane Kenyon, chairman of the North Yorkshire Police Authority, said: "It is very pleasing to hear Her Majesty's Inspector acknowledge the progress being made by NYP.

"We look forward to being able to make even further improvements in service delivery in the years to come."

The 2005/2006 North Yorkshire Police report said: "Some specialist resources are co-ordinated centrally (firearms, crime scene investigators, child protection), but the focus is on front-line staff delivering local solutions through neighbourhood policing teams."

However, the inspector's report on Humberside Police, said: "Call handling and response remain significant challenges, as do increasing community engagement and using new funding to produce real outcomes."

Nationwide, police performance has improved - a fact welcomed by Home Office minister Tony McNulty.

He said: "I am very encouraged by the police performance assessments which show that policing performance has improved across the board.

"Crime and fear of crime are both down, investigations are up and the number of offences brought to justice has increased significantly."

Sir Ronnie Flanagan, Her Majesty's Inspector Of Constabulary, added: "Over the past year I have seen commendable dedication and commitment at all levels of the police."

The results were turned into a league table by awarding forces points according to whether they were rated poor, fair, good or excellent in each category.

On that basis, North Yorkshire Police scored 13 points, putting it in joint 12th place, out of 42.

Humberside Police, however, scored three points - putting it in joint last place.