Police Attending Residential Burglaries Within an Hour Sees Increase in Charge Rates
(but more than 90% of break-ins still go unpunished)
Under new guidelines, police are now required to attend every burglary within an hour – and it’s having a modicum of success.
Described as the “Golden Hour” by the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC), the thinking is that if the police turn up to an incident within 60 minutes and start their enquiries, it can make all the difference in arrests being made, with stolen property being recovered.
The NPCC states “Effective action during the golden hour will increase the opportunity to identify suspects, protect victims and witnesses, and help to secure positive criminal justice outcomes.”
This more hands-on methodology is also designed to provide victims of crime with a certain peace of mind and restore evaporating confidence in the police.
The new guidelines require attending officers to carry out:
- Forensic tests and building searches
- House-to-house enquiries
- Obtain CCTV or video doorbell footage
"The average number of burglaries that are detected is around about 5%." NPCC burglary leads Deputy Chief Constable Alex Franklin-Smith said. "We don't believe that's good enough. We don't think the public would think that's good enough. So, that is very much where our focus is at the moment."
The latest guidelines have been issued on the back of depressing Home Office figures, revealing that in 75% of residential break-ins, no suspects are ever identified and even when they are, less than 4% are charged.
In Greater Manchester, where police have been trialling the one-hour attendance guideline for the past two years, the charge rate has more than doubled – albeit from a very low starting point of 3%. Currently, 8% of domestic burglaries now lead to a charge.
Greater Manchester Police Superintendent, Chris Foster, was recently quoted “The previous focus, I think, did take the eye off the ball in terms of burglary. It’s been, we can’t do anything about it, sorry. See you later, goodbye. Case closed.”
“Now, we arrest more people and burglary rates are falling.”
There are currently in excess of 1,000 break-ins a day across the UK. Many others are never reported. Despite this, burglaries are actually down by around 80% of the levels in the mid-1990s.
Justice Fire & Security Managing Director, Dave Sanders, said this was a testament to the fact that increasing numbers of people were taking home security much more seriously, together with the effectiveness of modern burglar alarm systems and CCTV installation.
“Whilst the latest police figures show there has been some improvement in detection rates since they started attending every burglary within one hour, the most effective way to stop a burglary is to prevent it from happening in the first place,” said Dave.
“The best way to stay safe is to have your property correctly secured. That means ensuring that doors, windows and gates are locked when the premises are unoccupied. It is also recommended to have a clearly visible and fully operational burglar alarm in place, with external security systems and lighting where appropriate. On larger properties, this might extend to CCTV cameras.”
He added, “Taking these steps is the best way to avoid becoming part of the crime statistics.”
For nearly 40 years, Justice Fire & Security have designed, installed and maintained gold-standard intruder alarm systems for homeowners throughout Birmingham, the wider West Midlands and Warwickshire, along with Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire
If you are concerned about your current home security arrangement, please do not hesitate to contact us. For all enquiries, contact our main switchboard on 0845 468 9077.
Police to attend burglaries within an hour, under new rules - BBC News
Police must attend scene of all burglaries within an hour under new guidelines | The Sun
