Wednesday, 10 October 2007

Police are tied up in too much red tape

Full Story:
http://www.stopinjusticenow.com/News_0386.htm
WILTSHIRE Police has been told the amount of paperwork given to officers investigating child abuse is putting cases at risk.
The conclusion comes in Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary - a review of the 43 forces in England and Wales.
Only six out of the 43 fared worse than Wiltshire, which was ranked good in tackling crime and fair in six other categories.
The finding is an indication that officers are being bogged down in administration.
The report says: "Since the linking of the domestic violence and child protection databases onto common architecture, the number (of referrals to child protection staff) by the end of the year to September 2007 was more than 2,000, which has vastly increased the administration burden, potentially directing staff away from the unit's core function (of investigating child abuse).
"Each referral is subject to mandatory review to ensure that all issues concerning the involvement of children are captured and risk assessed.
"This process is further magnified by the necessity to examine links made to intelligence reports, which if not carried out could compromise the health and welfare of a potential victim."

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