Cheshire Police Ranked Top in Country

Number One for Public Satisfaction
Cheshire Constabulary has topped the UK’s rankings for public satisfaction, incredibly this comes only three years after Cheshire was ranked worst in the UK for the same measure.

Deputy Chief Constable Graeme Gerrard said: “We have achieved this through a variety of measures that has put service for victims and witnesses right at the core of policing services in Cheshire.”

To improve the service to victims and witnesses the Constabulary looked at a number of different areas to see what could be done differently to give a better service. Particular areas, highlighted by members of the public as being a priority, where looked at. For example; having access to officers on days and at times to suit victims needs, being updated regularly on what was happening with the crime they had reported and when needed, responding in a timely manner.

Graeme added: “We made changes to the way in which we work in a number of areas. Members of the public who contacted us, and their enquiry did not require an officer to attend straight away, were offered an appointment to see an officer at a location and time to suit their requirements.

“This was key because it not only gave people what they wanted, but it also freed up police officer time to improve the response to 999 calls. The appointment system achieved this by cutting the time spent by officers turning up to peoples homes when they were not in.

“Another area we improved was contact with victims and witnesses. We introduced service desks whose primary role is to contact victims and witnesses and keep them updated about progress in their case. This is a prime example of the ‘You said, we did’ approach. The public said we were not meeting the needs of victims and we had to change and we responded by using the feedback to shape service delivery.