Published HMICFRS inspection reports for Devon & Cornwall Police: grades, key findings and recommendations over time.
His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) independently inspects police forces in England and Wales. This page collects the published inspection reports we have indexed for Devon & Cornwall Police — for the latest PEEL assessment snapshot, see the current HMICFRS rating.
2025-07-30 · thematic report
This publication outlines the decision made by His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, Sir Andy Cooke, to return Devon and Cornwall Police to its default phase of monitoring, categorized as Scan. This decision follows a period of monitoring under the Engage phase.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2024-09-27 · thematic report
This letter provides an update on the closure of a previously identified cause of concern regarding the response to the public by Devon and Cornwall Police, following sustained improvements by the force.
2024-07-11 · peel report
This report sets out the findings for Devon and Cornwall Police as part of the HMICFRS assessment of police forces in England and Wales, focusing on effectiveness, efficiency, and legitimacy.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2024-01-30 · thematic report
Between 13 and 17 November 2023, a joint targeted area inspection was carried out to evaluate the multi-agency response to identification of initial need and risk in Torbay. The findings of the inspection are outlined in this report.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2023-07-28 · thematic report
HMICFRS reviewed the progress that Devon and Cornwall Police has made regarding firearms licensing recommendations following the Keyham shootings. The review examined leadership, decision-making processes, and resource allocations.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2023-02-02 · peel report
This report sets out the findings for Devon and Cornwall Police based on the HMICFRS assessment framework for police effectiveness, efficiency, and legitimacy.
2020-02-07 · peel report
PEEL is HMICFRS’s annual assessment of police forces in England and Wales, focusing on their effectiveness, efficiency, and legitimacy. In 2018/19, the report utilized an integrated approach to assessments, evaluating how effectively, efficiently, and legitimately the force operates.
2019-09-11 · thematic report
This inspection into Devon and Cornwall Police is one of a series on police custody inspections carried out jointly by HMI Prisons and HMICFRS. The programme looks at strategy, treatment and conditions, individual rights and health care. It also contributes to the UK’s response to its international obligation to ensure regular and independent inspection of all places of detention.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2018-03-22 · peel report
As part of annual inspections, HMICFRS assessed Devon and Cornwall Police's effectiveness in keeping people safe and reducing crime. The inspection focused on five key areas of policing effectiveness.
2017-12-12 · peel report
This inspection report examined how Devon and Cornwall Police treat individuals with fairness and respect, the ethical behavior of their workforce, and how the workforce perceives their treatment. The findings reflect the standards of police legitimacy for the force. A national assessment was also conducted to identify overarching themes in police legitimacy across various forces.
2017-11-09 · peel report
This inspection examined how well forces understand the demand for their service, how well they match their resources to that demand, and how well they are planning to meet future demand. It provides an assessment of their efficiency based on these criteria.
2017-10-05 · peel report
This report evaluates the progress of Devon and Cornwall Police in response to concerns raised during the 2016 legitimacy inspections regarding their ability to seek intelligence on potential abuse of position for sexual gain. The inspection found that the police were required to implement a plan to seek such intelligence effectively.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2017-03-02 · peel report
This inspection assessed how effective the Devon and Cornwall Police force is at keeping people safe and reducing crime, focusing on five areas of policing. The assessment is part of the annual PEEL inspections.
2017-02-02 · revisit report
This report revisits the compliance of Devon and Cornwall Police with the Best Use of Stop and Search scheme. The 2016 inspection found non-compliance with some features of the scheme, necessitating this follow-up assessment.
2016-12-08 · peel report
This inspection evaluated how Devon and Cornwall Police treated people with fairness and respect, ensured their workforce acted ethically and lawfully, and assessed if their workforce felt fairly treated. The findings highlight the overall legitimacy of the force's operations.
2016-11-03 · peel report
This inspection examined how well Devon and Cornwall Police understands the demand for its services and how effectively it matches its resources to that demand. It provides an assessment of the force's efficiency within the context of national themes identified in the broader inspection framework.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2016-07-20 · thematic report
This inspection reviewed the progress made in Devon and Cornwall Police since the publication of HMIC's Devon and Cornwall – National Child Protection Inspection in 2015. It highlighted the significant role of the police in protecting children and working with other agencies.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2016-02-18 · peel report
The HMIC assessed Devon and Cornwall Police's effectiveness in keeping people safe and reducing crime and anti-social behaviour across four policing aspects. The report also integrates findings from previous reports on efficiency and legitimacy, forming a complete PEEL assessment.
2016-02-11 · peel report
This report assesses how legitimate the Devon and Cornwall Police is at keeping people safe and reducing crime, as part of the HMIC's legitimacy programme. It focuses on the fairness, reasonableness, effectiveness, and lawfulness of the force’s actions and their consent from the public.
2015-12-15 · peel report
This report assesses how effectively Devon and Cornwall Police protect vulnerable individuals and support victims as part of the PEEL inspections. It particularly focuses on responses to domestic abuse and the safeguarding of children at risk of exploitation.
2015-11-12 · thematic report
This report reviews the quality of criminal case files and how effectively the police identify the vulnerability of victims and witnesses. It highlights the need for accurate information in case papers submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, emphasizing the importance of assessing and managing risks for vulnerable individuals in the legal process.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2015-09-22 · national report
This inspection examined child protection in Devon and Cornwall Police in May 2015, focusing on the police's role in protecting children, investigating crimes, and collaborating with other agencies.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2014-01-30 · thematic report
This report is one of a series on police custody inspections carried out jointly by HMIC and HMI Prisons. The inspections look at strategy, treatment and conditions, individual rights and health care. They also make a key contribution to the United Kingdom’s response to its international obligation to ensure regular and independent inspection of all places of detention.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2013-07-18 · thematic report
This report identifies how Devon and Cornwall Police have planned to make savings in response to a 20% reduction in central funding announced by the Government, tracked by HMIC’s Valuing the Police Programme since 2011.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2012-12-18 · thematic report
This report revisits the findings of 2011's 'Without Fear or Favour' and assesses the progress made by the police forces in managing integrity threats. While some advancements have been noted, further improvements are necessary.
2012-07-27 · other report
On 15 November 2012 the first elections outside London for police and crime commissioners (PCCs) will be held across England and Wales. During early summer 2012, we assessed how police authorities are preparing for the change to PCCs, and we examined their transition plans. This report shows our findings for Devon and Cornwall.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2012-07-02 · thematic report
This report evaluates the financial challenges faced by the Devon and Cornwall police forces following a 20% funding reduction over four years. It assesses the responses and strategies implemented by the force to maintain service levels for the public after inspecting their plans from 2011.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2012-06-21 · thematic report
In Spring 2010, we carried out a review to find out how the police can best tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB). We committed to repeating this inspection in 2012 to check on progress. This report tells you what we found.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2012-01-25 · thematic report
This report looks at the quality of crime and incident data, and the arrangements in place to ensure standards are maintained and improved across the 43 police forces in England and Wales.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2011-08-01 · thematic report
The report assesses the value for money profile of the Devon and Cornwall police force. It evaluates various aspects of efficiency and effectiveness to identify potential improvements in service delivery.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2011-07-21 · value-for-money report
This report assesses the preparedness of the Devon and Cornwall police in delivering value for money. It analyses various aspects of the police force's operations and provides insight into their efficiency.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2010-09-22 · thematic report
This inspection report evaluates the handling of anti-social behaviour by the Devon and Cornwall police forces, assessing their approach and effectiveness. The headline conclusion is that improvements are needed in various aspects of their strategy and implementation.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2009-10-12 · force-specific report
This report presents the findings of the audit conducted on the national computer compliance of the Devon and Cornwall Police. The audit aimed to assess the compliance level of the police force regarding the use and management of national computer systems. Overall, the findings highlighted areas for improvement in practice and compliance.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2006-06-29 · force-specific report
This report evaluates the compliance of Devon and Cornwall Police with national computer standards. The inspection highlighted areas where improvements were needed to ensure system integrity and data accuracy.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2005-05-30 · force-specific report
This report inspects the South and West Devon Basic Command Unit's operations and performance. It highlights several strengths and areas for improvement based on the evaluation of police practices and community engagement.
2004-06-29 · other report
This report evaluates the police training mechanisms in the Devon and Cornwall region. The findings aim to enhance best practices in police training to improve public safety.
Full report on hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk2004-01-31 · force-specific report
This report inspects the North East Devon Basic Command Unit of the Devon and Cornwall police forces. It evaluates various aspects of police operations and provides graded judgements based on performance.
Source: HMICFRS · Crown copyright, summarised under the Open Government Licence v3.0 · Archive indexed 2026-07-19. BlueLineHub is independent and not affiliated with HMICFRS.