West Midlands Police chief: Changes have cut stop and searches
Refresher training for officers and the introduction of an electronic recording system have both contributed to the 'significant drop' in controversial stop and searches being carried out, according to a top police chief.
Increased public scrutiny of the powers is also improving how officers in the West Midlands make use of the practice and rebuild trust with the public.
The power of officers on the beat to stop and question members of the public has been heavily criticised for disproportionate use on black and Asian people and for frequently being used where nothing is found to be untoward.
In response to these concerns, West Midlands Police has sought to make the entire process more transparent and to make officers more accountable.
Central to this has been the role of dedicated scrutiny panels made up of civilians in each of the force's 10 local policing units.
They meet bi-monthly to look at recent records of stop and searches in their area and to question officers about its use.
Their job has been assisted greatly since April 2014 when the force changed how it records stop and search from a paper to computer-based system.
Known as 'eSearch' the new method gives accurate, up-to-date information about how, when, why and where stop and search powers are used - and since January this has been made available to the public online on the police.uk website.
The system also means anyone stopped by police under the power is provided with a feedback sheet which includes a QR code so this too can be logged and assessed digitally.
Chief Superintendent Chris Todd, force lead for stop and search, said the new measures have had a big impact.
"As a result of the changes we have seen a significant drop in the number of stop and searches which are conducted and at the same time we have seen an increase in the positive outcomes from them," he said.
"If you look at the data for 2011/12 we carried out 64,000 stops in the year. Last year this was down to 14,500, but actually when we were doing 64,000 searches only four percent were returning a positive outcome compared to about 26 percent now.
"It shows us we are using the power in a more focused and effective manner where we are conducting less unnecessary searches of people we do not need to be searching."
However, figures released in August showed black people are still three times more likely than white people to be stopped and searched by the force.
Between January and June this year, 1,172 black or black British people were stopped. This means, with 164,069 black or black British people in the West Midlands, 7.14 per 1,000 are being stopped.
A total of 4,642 white people were stopped across the six months, with a rate of 2.42 per 1,000.
Officers insist progress is being made and that greater accountability is a key factor why.
Deep Sandhu, a Tipton resident who chairs the stop and search scrutiny panel in Sandwell, said digital mapping has helped.
He added: "The main role for us is to see if these powers are being used properly and if the outcomes are better than previously when there was a lot of negative feedback when the powers were just being used randomly.
"There was that adverse publicity initially but it goes to show improvements can be made.
"When it was a paper-based system half the information would be missing and it was often difficult to understand why the officer had stopped the individual in each case.
"Now we can see all the relevant information on why the person was stopped, what the outcome was and a physical description of them too."
Training of officers has also changed the culture surrounding how the power is used, according to Ch Supt Todd.
Every frontline officer has been reminded of their legal obligations and the force even invited people who had been unnecessarily stopped and searched to talk about their experience.
West Midlands Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner, Yvonne Mosquito, said the force had led the way nationally in the changes it has made.
She added: "The invited public scrutiny via the community stop and search panels has been a really positive move.
"In addition, the introduction of the electronic recording system and the refresher training for officers have all played a role in helping ensure West Midlands Police is using stop and search powers more proportionally and much more effectively.
"People have started to be assured they will not be stopped simply based on their race, age or hairstyle but on some sort of intelligence where something has gone on."
