Transparency

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 know from conversations with you that drugs are a real concern in the community at present. Our Stop and Search powers are one of the ways we are working to tackle this. In this period, 56 people were stopped using drugs legislation. More than half of these searches (57 per cent) resulted in a positive outcome, which is when we find what we are looking for.

We have seen a drugs gang establish themselves within Fareham, and are seeking to use all available opportunities to disrupt those looking to blight our community.

Working with a number of other agencies, we have repelled gangs, repossessed properties and prosecuted a number of offenders.

Quarter three saw a 33 per cent increase in positive outcomes for all searches in the district. We take an intelligence led approach to stops and this shows in this data.

Is our use of Stop and Search in Fareham proportionate?

The latest data for Stop and Search has shown that a black person was 4.8 times more likely to be stopped in Fareham than a white person over this period. We will continue to scrutinise the use of this power and seek to ensure improvements in legitimacy. Stop & Search remains an effective tool to tackle criminality.

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 & Search in Fareham?

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.

So how does this fit in with our district priorities for Fareham?

The current district priorities in Fareham are:

• Preventing, reducing and tackling perpetrators of drug-related harm (DRH)
• Covid-19
• Working with partners to reduce anti-social behaviour