Stop and Search
5. Stop and Search (Havant)
The force has a commitment to becoming more open and transparent. Part of this is being better at sharing and engaging on some of the powers that our police officers use to keep people safe, and that includes Stop and Search.
We believe that greater scrutiny will further ensure that our use of these is right and proper.
What are we searching for?
We have primarily focused on tackling drug use and reducing youth-related anti-social behaviour (ASB) in the Grewell area. This is a joint operation involving partner agencies and authorities, led by Sgt Jamie Graham.
The operation focuses on people between the ages of 10 and 17 years old, with our neighbourhood teams working with the Willows Team from Social Services to focus on those believed to be causing the most ASB and divert them to other meaning full activities.
We have also used Anti-Social Behaviour Act Dispersal Powers that allow officers to disperse groups in an area. This is an effective tactic and we have only had four breaches during this period.
Is our use of Stop and Search in Havant proportionate?
Our data covering the period from July to September 2024 shows a black person is 7.6 times more likely to be stopped compared to a white person, while a mixed race person is 3.3 times more likely to be stopped.
Stops are scrutinised by our sergeants and inspectors, to ensure our officers are carrying out lawful and proportionate stops.
We know that some families who have lost loved ones to violence and drug related harm advocate police searches but we also know many people have concerns about whether policing powers are used fairly. As a force we know that it helps us to keep people safe and spend considerable time scrutinising how it is used. But, we also recognise that our view alone is not enough.
We need views from others so we are doing far more engagement than we did previously. Scrutiny involving our Independent Advisory Groups (made up of members of the public) is therefore part of our approach, and we would encourage people all of our communities to get involved in these groups. We also want to hear more views on Stop and Search. Follow us on Facebook if you’d like to take part in discussions about policing in your local area.
Where can I find more information about Stop and Search in Havant?
You can see more about the numbers by looking at the infographic, below. We have also provided the same data in a different format if that is easier for you.
Where can I find previous data for the Havant district?
If you want to take a look at previous quarterly data for the Havant district, then you can find that here.
