A REVIEW has been launched into how police consult the public and how neighbourhood policing is run, following criticism in a Government report.

Thames Valley Police has been judged in a report by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary assessing how the force has succeeded in achieving standards of service promised in the Policing Pledge.

Inspectors raised concerns that members of the public can only join half of the force’s Neighbourhood Action Groups, which consult communities and set priorities for officers to tackle.

The report said neighbourhood priorities were too general and lacked context or detail and that the way the force engaged with the public was irregular and not influenced by public consultation.

In April last year, the region was divided into neighbourhoods, with dedicated police teams and committees set up to fix priorities for action.

The Policing Pledge was launched in January to work alongside neighbourhood policing and lists 10 promises outlining the minimum standards of service the public should expect,ranging from response times to how officers deal with the public.

Thames Valley Assistant Chief Constable Steve Rowell said the force had not had sufficient time to implement all aspects of the pledge.

He said: “While the HMIC report doesn’t examine every aspect of neighbourhood policing, it does identify a number of areas for improvement that relate to how we deliver neighbourhood policing, particularly in relation to community meetings.

“The force and local partners were already undertaking a review of these arrangements and the Inspectorate’s findings will inform this process.”

The HMIC scored the force as ‘fair’ in dealing with seven of the pledges and ‘good’ for three of the pledges. Overall it concluded: “Performance is variable and falls short of the required standard. Remedial action is needed.”

Inspectors criticised the force for issues including not consulting the public on station opening times and taking neighbourhood officers for other duties.

However, the force was praised for setting up neighbourhood bases and using mobile technology, improving response times and in tracking complaints.

Mr Rowell added: “We have already taken steps to address the issues raised by the inspectors.”

The force received two ‘good’ grades and one ‘fair’ in the report for what it was doing to improve services.

The full report and Policing Pledge can be seen at the police authority website.