Durham Constabulary
About this force
| Area | 861 square miles |
|---|---|
| Recording stop and account? | No |
| Force website | Visit website |
About the PCC in this area
| Police & Crime Commissioner | Ron Hogg (Labour) |
|---|---|
| Email address | enquiries@durham-pcc.gov.uk |
| PCC website | Visit website |
How many searches do police do?
April 2016 – March 2017
The police conducted 1,776 stop and searches under PACE Section 1 across the area covered by Durham Constabulary.
This was a reduction of 61% from the previous year.
There were 2 stop and searches under Section 60 Criminal Justice & Public Order Act, a power which doesn’t require individual reasonable suspicion.
April 2015 – March 2016
The police conducted 4,523 stop and searches under PACE Section 1 across the area covered by Durham Constabulary.
This was a reduction of 46% from the previous year.
There were 15 stop and searches under Section 60 Criminal Justice & Public Order Act, a power which doesn’t require individual reasonable suspicion.
Stop and account
Durham Constabulary do not record stop and accounts.
What are searches targeted at?
| Target | Proportion of searches |
|---|---|
| Drugs | 46% |
| Stolen property | 23% |
| Going equipped | 18% |
| Offensive weapons | 10% |
| Other | 2% |
| Firearms | 1% |
| Criminal damage | 0% |
How effective are police stop and searches?
In 2016/17, there were only two searches conducted under section 60, a power that does not require any suspicion to believe that a person is engaged in criminality or violence in order to search them. This is a reduction from 15 recorded searches in 2015/16.
April 2016 – March 2017
7% of stop and searches conducted under PACE Section 1 lead to an arrest.
8% of stop and searches conducted under Section 60 Criminal Justice & Public Order Act lead to an arrest.
April 2015 – March 2016
17% of stop and searches conducted under PACE Section 1 lead to an arrest.
Who is getting searched?
Disproportionality has risen in Durham despite an overall reduction in the total number of searches in the last financial year 2016/17. That year, people from black or mixed ethnicities were searched at almost double the rate of whites. Asians were searched at slightly higher rates than whites. Only people from Chinese or other backgrounds were underrepresented in searches. This is an astonishing change because Durham previously had one of the lowest racial disproportionality in the country where ethnic minorities were searched at lower rates than whites.
PACE disproportionality ratios
| Ethnic groups | Ratio |
|---|---|
| White : Black | 1 : 1.8 |
| White : Asian | 1 : 1.2 |
| White : Mixed | 1 : 1.8 |
| White : Other | 1 : 0.4 |