Police force criticised over Nottingham attacks moved into special measures

Nottinghamshire Police has been moved into special measures by inspectors due to concerns about how it carries out investigations and deals with victims.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has announced the force has been moved into an enhanced level of monitoring following an review carried out between the end of 2023 and January 2024.

The inspectorate has yet to issue a full report but says it has two “accelerated causes of concern” and has decided to act immediately.

The force needs to “improve how it manages and carries out effective investigations, and make sure that victims get the support they need” while inspectors are also concerned that there are not effective arrangements to monitor performance.

Nottinghamshire Police faced intense criticism over its handling of the killings carried out by Valdo Calocane last year.

Two students, Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Webber, both 19, and school caretaker Ian Coates, 65, were stabbed to death by Calocane in the early hours of the morning on 13 June 2023.

The police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating whether polcie missed opportunties to catch Calocane sooner, while the families have also spoken of their anger that prosecutors chose to accept a guilty plea to manslaughter on the basis of diminished responsibility.

A court heard Calocane has been diagnosed with “serious” mental health issues and was sentenced to a hospital order.

It also emerged that two Nottinghamshire Police officers were disciplined after sharing graphic messages about the injuries suffered by the victims in a WhatsApp group.

Following his sentencing, Barnaby’s mother, Emma Webber, said police had “blood on your hands” and that “true justice has not been served” after his pleas to manslaughter by diminished responsibility were accepted.

Confirming on Monday that the force would be moved to special measures, His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Roy Wilsher said: “We move police forces into our enhanced level of monitoring, known as Engage, when a force is not responding to our concerns, or if it is not managing, mitigating or eradicating these concerns.

“The Engage process provides additional scrutiny and support from the inspectorate and other external organisations in the policing sector to help the force improve and provide a better service for the public.

“Nottinghamshire Police has been asked to urgently produce an improvement plan and will meet regularly with our inspectors. We will work closely with the force to monitor its progress against these important and necessary changes.”

In response, Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police Kate Meynell said: “As Chief Constable I recognise the serious nature of the HMICFRS findings. I have taken urgent action to address the immediate concerns raised and have ensured that all of the initial recommendations that relate to our investigations and support for victims have been completed.

“I have tasked a dedicated team of detectives to carry out a thorough review of all of the crimes identified by HMICFRS. This review has found that all of these crimes are being managed by specially trained officers, with supervisors overseeing the progress we make.

“The review did identify that in 2 per cent of cases there was not an update from a supervisor recorded on our system, but this does not mean there was no investigative activity being undertaken.”

She insisted that victims of crime are “at the heart” of the work carried out by police in Nottinghamshire.

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“I have overseen changes to help us meet our demand and ensure that we provide the best possible service to communities,” she said.

“These include some operational changes to make sure our officers are in the right places, at the right time, and a new process for how we safeguard victims of domestic abuse.

“However, we do need to improve further in this area and we are working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing on this.

“I fully acknowledge that our force has work to do to achieve our vision of being an outstanding force that we can all be proud of.

“I am fully committed to working with HMICFRS and we will work tirelessly to address their concerns and deliver the best possible service for the people of Nottinghamshire.”