Humberside Police wins ‘Silver’ award for UK service of the year

PROUD: Chief Constable Lee Freeman

Humberside Police has been recognised as the ‘Silver’ winner for the UK Police Service of the Year Award.

The iESE Public Sector Awards accolade, which recognises forces that show outstanding transformation, was announced at a ceremony in London last night.

Three forces made it to the final, with Essex winning ‘Gold’ and South Wales scooping ‘Bronze’.

Since 2017, Humberside Police has been transformed from an organisation which required improvement, to one that has been graded ‘Good’ across all areas in its last inspection.

The force was congratulated for its work on recruiting an additional 600 officers since 2016, its call handling, which is surpassing all national benchmarks, the improvement of confidence levels among its communities and its renewed focus on the victims of crime and how they are better supported.

It has also gone from having the highest levels of low morale across all 45 UK police services, to being the best.

Chief Constable Lee Freeman said: “When I took on the role of Chief Constable in 2017, it was clear a period of challenging transformation was ahead of us.

“The force needed to better support its staff and better serve its communities.

“While we are still very much on that journey, this award is recognition that we’re doing the right thing and making headway in becoming the outstanding force I know we can become.

“This accolade is the culmination of efforts from across the entire team at Humberside Police.

“We should all feel proud for what we have achieved to date. It has been a complete cultural change at every level and I’d like to thank the staff for their continued support, without which, the transformation we’ve seen would not have been possible.”

DELIGHTED: Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan Evison

The award comes at a time when public confidence in Humberside Police is at an all-time high, with growing satisfaction rates across the region, the lowest 999 / 101 abandonment rate, some of the fastest response times in the UK, and vastly improved outcomes across all types of crimes since 2017.

Humberside Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan Evison, said: “I am delighted with the news that Humberside Police has received a ‘Silver’ award for Police Service of the Year.

“Winning this award is a well-earned result for the hard work and dedication of all officers and staff in the organisation and mirrors the passion and professionalism I see on a daily basis.

“This will give a huge boost of confidence to the region and prove that the commitment people have within the force has been well founded and will continue to drive achievements going forward.

“A big well done to everyone.”