Bedfordshire 'not unique' in recruitment challenges says police and crime commissioner as report says lack of detectives causing 'real strain'

But additional detectives have already been appointed since Bedfordshire Police was inspected by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), he added.

Bedfordshire Police was assessed as “good” in recording crime, “adequate” across seven areas and “requiring improvement” in investigating crime.

The report (published January 29, 2025) said the lack of trained detectives across the force is putting a “real strain” on the rest of the workforce.

The inspectors said Bedfordshire Police should increase the number of trained detectives to help manage demand to “achieve better outcomes”.

PCC John Tizard said: “I think it’s important to remember the report was based on the inspection in September.

“My understanding is we’ve got… additional detectives or officers that are about to be processed to be appointed as detectives.

“Bedfordshire is not unique in having challenges in appointing and recruiting detectives, but I know that something is under way [to address this].

“But it’s something I’m very concerned about, and I’m holding the chief constable to account to ensure that we’ve got given our overall numbers of officers that we can get the appropriate level for detection work.”

The report commended Bedfordshire Police for making “significant improvements” when answering 999 and 101 calls.

But added that the force needs to “attend incidents more quickly” and update callers if there are delays in attending.

The PCC said patrol response times was something he had raised regularly with the chief constable.

“We’ve got to improve patrol response, and I don’t think there’s any excuse for the current levels, and we need to work much harder to do that,” the PCC said.

“999 [calls are] now answered within a matter of seconds, but then we need to follow it up with speedy and effective patrol response.

“I say effective, because it isn’t just an arrival, it’s how the patrol officers deal and support the victim, deal with the issues and then the pursuing investigation,” he said.

“I think what is interesting is the response rate is fairly common across the county, so it’s not an urban/rural or north/south [issue].

“There will be some variations, but principally it’s a county-wide issue,” he said.

The report said Bedfordshire Police has an internal target of 15 minutes to respond to emergency calls.

“I know that there is much work underway to improve performance and I am confident that the chief constable has the plans and the drive [for] continuous performance,” the PCC added in a statement.