The West Midlands Police force is the second largest in the UK. With over 7,600 police officers, the area covers Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Dudley, Solihull and Sandwell. The West Midlands Police website informs us that the area covered is 348 square miles and that the force serves a population of 2.63 million.
On a typical day, West Midlands Police officers:
- Deal with 3,000 incidents
- Make 320 arrests
- Attend 171 burglaries
- Investigate 31 robberies
- Attend 29 road accidents involving injury
Over the past 12 months West Midlands Police:
- Received over half a million 999 calls – more than 1,600 per day
- Answered 97 per cent of those calls within 15 seconds
- Responded to more emergencies than ever before
- Increased the amount of time officers spend on the beat
The statistics for emergency calls are staggering, as is the number of motorists that travel through the region. Whilst the police may receive criticism for their response times and quite openly admit to not attending anti-social behaviour incidents (unless they are having a quiet time), the fact remains that West Midlands Police now deal with twice the number of emergency calls than they did in 1990, cope with a rise of 40 per cent more reported crimes and a steadily rising number of emergencies, yet have only seen a 10 per cent increase in the number of police officers.
It must be frustrating at times for the police when, after apprehending a criminal and completing endless amounts of paperwork in preparation for a court case, the legal system then acts with apathy and a hell-bent desire to shoot the police in the foot. Hardly the best way of motivating an already stretched police force.
Regional and national government needs to respond to public demand for a more effective fight against crime. This means more funding to provide extra officers on the beat and a complete shake-up of the legal system, which should provide a more effective deterrent against repeat offenders rather than proving to criminals that crime pays.
The West Midlands Police recently purchased its HQ building from the investment company that owned it. The 11-storey tower has been home to West Midlands Police since the mid-1960s.
To find out more about West Midlands Police, visit their website:
www.west-midlands.police.uk
WM Police HQ, Lloyd House, Colmore Circus, Birmingham, B4 6NQ
Tel: 0845 113 5000
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