Older people who have been the victims of crime are often let
down by the police and wider criminal justice system which does
not always understand their needs and experiences, according to a
new report.
Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue
Services (HMICFRS) and Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service
Inspectorate (HMCPSI) found that the police have only a
“superficial understanding” of the nature and extent of crimes
against older people, which often results in a poorer service to
older victims.
Older people account for 18 percent of the population, but over
eight out of ten victims of doorstop scams are elderly, and they
also comprise a quarter of domestic homicide victims.
Despite this, and the fact that we have an increasingly ageing
population, the two inspectorates found that the police and Crown
Prosecution Service (CPS) lacked any joint cohesive and focused
strategy to deal with older victims of crime.
The report – The poor relation. The police and CPS
response to crimes against older people – praised
the work of police officers in their initial dealings with older
victims of crime, including attending promptly to reports of
crime from older victims. But afterwards, officers
struggled to deal with some of the complex needs of older people.
This meant:
- Older
people were not always properly safeguarded. For example, in 153
cases where a safeguarding referral should have been made by
police to the local authority, on 77 occasions we could not find
any evidence of this taking place.
-
Referral to victim support services for older people was too
inconsistent.
- Older
people were not always offered the support of intermediaries, or
helped to give their best evidence, for example by
video-recording their evidence or using hearing loops.
In this inspection, the first by HMICFRS and HMCPSI to look
specifically at older victims of crime, adult safeguarding was
described as the ‘poor relation’ of safeguarding
arrangements. Whilst the police are correct to take child
safeguarding incredibly seriously, there are concerns that
safeguarding for vulnerable adults is not prioritised in the same
way. It is important that those aged 18 and over receive
the protection and support that they require.
Of the 192 cases the inspectorates looked at in detail, victim
care was found to be not good enough in 101, and the Victims’
Code had been complied with on only 97 occasions.
HM Inspector of Constabulary, Wendy Williams,
said:
“As people are living increasingly longer, it is imperative that
the needs of older people are properly understood by those
charged with protecting them.
“While the care and concern of police officers for all victims of
crime cannot be doubted, older victims often present unique
challenges which need to be considered.
“Unfortunately, our inspection found that older people are often
not treated according to their needs by the criminal justice
system. A good start would be to make sure assessments are
consistently made of victims’ needs.
“We want to see a sharper focus on older people, and the problems
they face. For example, we believe that the police and the CPS
can work together better to understand the problem and develop
strategies for how to respond.
“We are also concerned about the lack of consistent adult
safeguarding arrangements. We want this inspection to kickstart
the change and we hope that our recommendations will make all
vulnerable people safer.”
As a result of the inspection, HMICFRS and HMCPSI made a series
of recommendations aimed at improving responses to older victims
of crime and vulnerable adults more generally, these included:
- The
National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) and the CPS should, within
six months, agree a definition of what constitutes an older
victim and take a coordinated approach to understand and respond
to the problem.
- The
NPCC should, within six months, establish a standard way for
police forces to conduct a victim needs assessment.
- The
NPCC and College of Policing (COP) should, within six months,
develop a strategy for how the police service should respond to
the problems faced by older people, and agree who should be
responsible for it.
- The
NPCC and COP should, as a matter of urgency, develop guidelines
and training for officers involved in adult safeguarding
procedures.
