Police leadership on brink as investigation times triple | Politics | News

Police chiefs in England and Wales are facing a damning report revealing a collapse in criminal investigations, with investigation times almost tripling in the last decade.

A study published today by the Social Market Foundation found that despite significant increases in the number of officers, investigation times have increased by a staggering 193%, from 14 days to 41 days.

The think tank warned that poor leadership within the force was a major factor, with officers overwhelmed, under-supported and struggling to catch criminals and secure convictions.

The report found that recorded crimes resulting in charges or summonses per officer have fallen by more than 40% over the past decade. Overall charge rates have fallen by 58% compared to 2013/14 and the number of offenses faced by each officer has increased.

While police numbers have increased, the rise in crime has vastly outpaced recruitment, leading to a 44% increase in crimes per officer over the past decade. The report paints a bleak picture of investigative capacity, with 90% of police forces rated by investigators as ‘mediocre’ or worse for their ability to solve cases.

There was even a 75% decrease in forces considered “good” during the same period.

Leadership failures were identified as the main reason for the decline after concerns were raised by the Office of the Chief Inspector of Constabulary in 2023. The report found that leadership was the lowest-scoring area in the 2025 National Police Wellbeing Survey, scoring just 4 out of 10.

Officers also reported concerns about training; Only 43% said learning and development activities actually helped improve their performance. The impact of a lack of performance-enhancing training has been particularly severe in complex criminal cases such as cybercrime.

Cases involving online criminals have increased in recent years, but only 0.1% resulted in charges or summonses, compared to 17.2% for non-fraud or non-cyber victim-based crimes.

Despite concerns that officers were closing investigations prematurely, the report found investigations were still taking longer to complete, putting more pressure on officers and victims. SMF said more complex crimes and high rates of sexual assault and harassment were contributing to the problem.

He also warned that leadership and management failures in Britain’s policing were making the situation worse. The report estimated that more than half a million additional crimes could be solved if investigations failed due to “evidentiary difficulties” were reduced by just 25%.

Richard Hyde, Senior Researcher at the Social Market Foundation, said: “It is clear that policing in England and Wales faces significant, systemic challenges.

“The widespread poor performance of the police in criminal investigation is closely linked to the low rate of prosecution of crimes, particularly fraud and cybercrime. Together they highlight the fact that the English and Welsh model of policing has failed and is in dire need of reform.

“A major overhaul of police leadership and the elimination of issues such as workplace casualty rates are vital if the public is to have confidence that the police will be policed ​​more effectively.”

The report warned that leadership reforms face further pressure from workforce instability, with the Police Wellbeing Survey showing a 29% attrition rate.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp MP said the findings showed the urgent need for change.

“The reality is that not enough criminals are being caught,” he said. “Only 7.3 per cent of crimes recorded in the quarter resulted in a charge or summons, and less than 5 per cent by the Met, the largest police force.”

He added that focusing on technology and ensuring police pursue “all reasonable avenues of investigation” could help restore trust in law enforcement.

The report, titled Severe Performance, analyzed inspection findings, Home Office crime data, police workforce statistics and a 2025 survey of officers, warning that policing failures will continue to deepen without decisive leadership reform.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has been approached for comment.