REPORT OF CHIEF SUPERINTENDENT BRIAN WROE
TO THE SCRUTINY COMMITTEE
MONDAY 2 SEPTEMBER 2002
Introduction
I last appeared in front of this committee on 14 January 2002 when I discussed with
members the situation concerning Crime and Disorder in the City of Salford. It may
therefore be useful to present current statistics and to put them into context with the
report which I gave on that last occasion. I will therefore comment upon the key
categories as they appear within the attached documents. Current figures are based
upon crime and incident reports received between the beginning of April and the end
of July 2002 and comparisons are based upon reports from the same period in 2001.
The figures which I presented to you in January were based upon crime and incident
reports received between the beginning of April 2001 and the end of December 2001.
Overall Crime
Overall crime is virtually unchanged (a rise of 0.1%). This is a welcome improvement
on the last time I reported to this committee when the rise was 3.2%. The rise in the
offences of wounding and burglary are noticeable and are balanced out by reductions
in theft of and from vehicles and criminal damage.
Detection Rates
This division has been criticised for a detection rate lower than that of other divisions
of Greater Manchester. One school of thought points to a culture within Salford which
is reluctant to help the police. We are striving to challenge that, indeed I openly
discourage talk of a ‘No Grass Culture.’ Strenuous efforts have been made to improve
detection rates and I am pleased to say that they currently stand at 19.6% having
remained at 15 to 16% for a long period of time. This is a significant increase.
Violent Crime
This is an area of concern and the rise of 12.9% represents a difference of some 197
offences. Primarily that increase has been in offences of wounding many of which are
induced by alcohol but others which are attacks on the street with little apparent
motive. Detection rates show a welcome improvement from 54.4% when I last spoke
to you rising to 57.5% at the present time.
Robberies
This particularly nasty offence is central to the Street Crime Initiative which is
personally led by the Prime Minister. I will comment further upon that initiative later in
this report. When I last spoke to you the rise in robbery was 29.6% which was
substantial but which was in line with many similar inner city urban environments in
England and Wales. I am pleased to report that the trend has changed and the rise
now of 16.2%, while being far from satisfactory, is a different picture to that in
January 2002. The improvement has been achieved by strict targeting of police
resources, partnership support and an intelligence led approach. It has to be said that
other categories inevitably suffer as a result of such a diversion of police resources.
The detection rate is 16% and compares favourably with the previous report when the
figure was 12.9%.
Burglary Dwelling
Burglary of dwellings has risen, year on year, by 10.4% representing an increase of
134 offences across the city. This is an example of resources being diverted, to a
degree, away from this offence and onto the higher priority of robbery. The detection
rate has improved from 5.1% at my last report to 6.4% and it is hoped to build upon
that increase in the months ahead.
Vehicle Crime
This category shows a reduction of 11.8% which means that there have been 304 less
vehicle crime offences between April and July 2002 compared to the same period in
2001. Substantial police resources have not been targeted upon vehicle crime rather a
partnership approach to reduce the incidence has been followed. This means that
measures such as secure car parks, better lighting, better security advice have been
at the forefront rather than specific police operations which can be lengthy and
resource intensive. The co-operation of car parks owners and vehicle manufacturers
is critical in reducing these crimes. The low detection rate (3.5% compared to 5.4% at
my last report) reflects a greater reliance upon prevention rather than detection.
Juvenile Nuisance
On my last report I made mention of the disturbing rise of 44.6% in reports of juvenile
nuisance. A good deal of work has gone on since then in liaison with our partners at
the city council and elsewhere. I am pleased to report a reduction now of 17.2%
however we must not be complacent. Efforts will continue, in particular we are
working effectively with Trading Standards to prosecute off licence holders who serve
alcohol to under age youngsters. Furthermore, the months of October and November
historically bring a rise in such calls. I have made mention of the pressing need to
introduce stronger controls upon the sale and importation of fireworks. The
continued absence of such controls will bring misery to the lives of some of our
residents in the weeks ahead.
Street Crime Initiative
The drive to reduce street crime is led by the Prime Minister. Street Crime is robbery,
theft from the person, ‘carjacking’ and firearms offences. In practice the emphasis is
on robbery. This division has worked extremely hard to reduce the incidence of
robbery in a rising ‘market.’ I have reported upon current success above. In order to
achieve this the division must provide a Robbery Unit, whose members are taken
from the ranks of patrol officers and Crime Operations. Furthermore, the Swinton Sub
Division has a Dedicated Source Unit which develops hard intelligence from sources
on the street. The investigation of each robbery offence is given a high priority, from
rapid attendance on the street, to improved forensic and identification techniques.
Our response has paid dividends however this inevitably takes resources from other
areas. We will continue to give Street Crime a high priority. It is an offence which
attacks the very independence of the people of Salford and visitors to the city.
National Crime Recording Standard
With effect from April 2002 the NCRS was introduced nationally. The aims of the
NCRS are
 To promote greater consistency between forces in the recording of crime
 To take a more victim-orientated approach to crime recording
All complaints of incidents, whether from victims or third parties and whether crime
related or not, will result in the creation of an incident report by the police. The police
will record an incident as a notifiable crime if
 The circumstances as reported amount to a crime and
 There is no credible evidence to the contrary
Where the alleged victim confirms that a crime has taken place but declines to
support any police action, a crime report will still be submitted.
Greater Manchester Police is proud of the integrity in its crime recording system.
Nonetheless, it is inevitable that the introduction of the NCRS will have an effect upon
crime and incident figures. In the fullness of time it will make for more meaningful
comparison of crime figures between different forces.
Brian Wroe
Divisional Commander