GMP still in special measures as list of forces which are getting extra scrutiny is published

Greater Manchester Police is one of five forces which remain in special measures, say government inspectors. It is amongst a list published today of forces which have been escalated to an "enhanced level of monitoring" known as Engage.

Greater Manchester Police was placed in special measures in December 2020 after a watchdog report revealed an estimated 80,000 crimes had not been properly recorded. The scandal cost the then chief constable Ian Hopkins his job. The force is said to be improving although it remains in special measures.

The other five four forces are Cleveland Police, Gloucestershire Constabulary, the UK's largest police force, The Metropolitan Police, Staffordshire Police, and Wilshire Police. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services issued the full list today.

GMP has been the subject of several critical reports over the last few years. In 2016, HMIC carried out a crime data integrity (CDI) inspection and found that the force was not always recording reported violent crimes, sexual offences and crimes reported to its public protection investigation units (PPIUs). This meant that too often the force was failing victims of crime.

In 2018 it carried out a CDI re-inspection to review the progress made since 2016. The force was found to have made several improvements, but further improvement was still required to close gaps identified in the service to vulnerable victims of crime. In particular, the force still had work to do to improve its identification and recording of all reports of crime which are domestic-abuse related and recording of rape crimes reported to the force.

In 2019 HMIC inspected the force’s effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy. It expressed concern that