Avon and Somerset Police have been branded "institutionally racist" by the force's own Chief Constable.

In a statement Chief Constable Sarah Crew said she was in 'no doubt' that the force was institutionally racist:

"For some time now at Avon and Somerset Police, we’ve been discussing how we truly become an anti-racist police service. The conversations have been compelling and inspiring and have helped us focus on the courageous steps we must take to turn this ambition into a reality.

"When it comes to race, I’m in no doubt that, by Baroness Casey’s criteria at least, Avon and Somerset Police is institutionally racist."

The Casey Review was a report into behavioural standards in the Metropolitan Police published in March. It set out four tests to identify the existence of racism:

  1. There are racists and people with racist attitudes within the organisation.
  2. Staff and officers from Black heritage and ethnically / racially minoritised backgrounds experience racism at work and it is routinely ignored, dismissed, or not spoken about.
  3. Racism and racial bias are reinforced within systems.
  4. The force under-protects and over-polices Black heritage people.

Ms Crew said Avon and Somerset Police were institutionally racist according to this standard, and added "I think it’s likely to be true for misogyny, homophobia, and disability as well, though the gaps in the data don’t give us the sense of scale, impact, or certainty that we have for race."

The force say they are taking action to tackle what they term 'disproportionality', which they define as "differential experiences in the way we interact with people from different ethnic and racial backgrounds, particularly those who are from Black heritage communities."

Measures include deferring prosecution for young first-time offenders, in a scheme dubbed 'Chance to Change'. Avon and Somerset said: "The aim of this scheme is to keep more young men of Black heritage out of the criminal justice system, reduce re-offending and improve relationships between the police, criminal justice system partners and Black heritage communities."

Among other measures, individuals who are stopped and searched will now be issued with 'receipts' and will be able to give feedback about their experience. The force are also reaching out to develop their plans with 'affected communities':

"We also want to have communities involved in changing our systems.  We’ve got some ideas, but we need to develop them together with those most directly affected. So, we will be reaching out to our communities over the next few months to ask people to come forward if they want to be involved or maybe just informed.

"This will ensure any changes we make will reduce disproportionality and re-build trust and confidence form our Black heritage communities."

The full statement by Chief Constable Sarah Crew can be read at the Avon and Somerset Police website.