An independent inspection of Essex Police has found the force to be ‘outstanding’ at accurately recording crime,

The HMICFRS inspection took place this year and Essex was one of 39 forces judged against how crimes are recorded in line with national standards.

Crime reports between 1 August 2018 and 31 January 2019 were examined, and based on that sample, the inspectorate found that in more than 95 per cent of cases the force accurately records crimes, an improvement from their last inspection in 2014, However, the inspection estimated that around 6,700 crimes per year are incorrectly recorded.

In the 12 months to August 2019, Essex Police recorded a total of 166,959 crimes which would mean the estimate of those not recorded correctly would make up four per cent of this total.

Deputy Chief Constable Pippa Mills said: "I'm really proud of this result and really proud of all the officers, staff and specials whose excellent work on crime recording has led to us being judged as outstanding in this report.

"I am really pleased that in the vast majority of crimes recorded on our system are recorded correctly, and this is down to a great deal of hard work from both officers and police staff. Work is continuing to ensure we improve even further."

Roger Hirst, the police, fire and crime commissioner for Essex, said: "This is great news and really commends the commitment officers and staff have to getting it right and doing the best they can for the people of Essex. It is impressive and gives people confidence in their police force.

"Good data is the basis for good policing decisions, and makes sure the force can deploy the right resources to the right places, so Essex Police can be as efficient and effective as possible."

"Our scrutiny of Essex Police is on-going and we will hold the Chief Constable to account to ensure that this progress and improvement continues, with recording rates and processes getting even better. The future looks really positive for Essex Police. Thank you to everyone for their hard work and dedication."