Metropolitan Police: Concerns raised over Met Police’s performance as force ‘failing’ in several areas

The Police Inspectorate has said that the Metropolitan Police is ‘failing’ in several areas, stating ‘urgent improvements’ must be made.

His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICRFS) conducted a ‘PEEL’ assessment of the force in 2021 and 2022 - which stands for  police efficiency, effectiveness and legitimacy inspection.

HMICRFS independently assesses and reports on police forces and fire & rescue services across England and Wales – in the public interest.

The Met Police was graded in nine areas, ranking each as outstanding, good, adequate, requires improvement or inadequate.

How was the Met Police rated in the report?

The force was not graded as outstanding in any of the nine areas.

Good - Preventing Crime

Adequate - Recording data about crime, Treatment of the public

Requires Improvement - Investigating crime, Protecting vulnerable people, managing offenders, developing a positive workplace, good use of resources

Inadequate - Responding to the public

Despite the seemingly  damning report, the Met Police is still performing well in some areas, with the assessment finding that ‘The force is good at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour’.

The only inadequate grading was on responding to the public. The assessment says ‘The force needs to improve how it answers calls for service and how it identifies vulnerability at the first point of contact’.

The assessment gave recommendations that the Met should aim to reach in six and nine months.

What did the Inspector of Constabulary say about the Metropolitan Police Service?

His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr said: “For a considerable time, I have had growing concerns about several aspects of the Met’s performance.

“Our previous inspections explained some of these, such as our March 2022 inspection of the force’s counter-corruption arrangements, which described a range of systemic failures.

“The Met operates under scrutiny other forces do not face. This week alone, it managed superbly one of the biggest policing operations in history when Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest, just days after contending with the appalling assault on two officers in Leicester Square.

“Our latest report describes many successes and some examples of innovation. However, it also raises serious concerns about how the force responds to the public and the level of understanding the force has about its demand and its workforce.

“The Met must get better at how it responds to the public – currently, its call handling teams are unable to answer calls quickly enough. In addition, it isn’t correctly documenting the decisions of victims to withdraw from an investigation or to accept an out-of-court disposal.

“Recording victims’ wishes is vital to support the criminal justice process and to understand what is stopping victims from being able to complete the investigation process. The Met must improve in this area.

“I also want to see the force support its officers and staff more robustly. Investigations are not always reviewed or overseen properly. There’s an unfair allocation of work, which puts undue pressure on some staff. The force needs to properly understand demand to ensure it is allocating its staff and resources effectively.

“We did find some positives in our inspection. The Met is good at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour, and has developed innovative techniques to improve how it collects evidence and identifies offenders, such as its new forensic technique for detecting the presence of blood on dark clothing and its new rapid testing kit for drink spiking.

“Given our findings, we are now monitoring the Met under our Engage process, which provides additional scrutiny and support, and I will continue to closely monitor the force’s progress.”