The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for North Wales has been scrutinising North Wales Police (NWP).

At a Strategic Executive Board meeting (30 October) PCC Andy Dunbobbin and his team meet chief NWP officers to review performance.

The chief constable provided updates on areas including Operation Soteria, violence against women and girls and road safety.

Operation Soteria is a Home Office funded research and change programme to drive up charging and conviction rates for rape and serious sexual offences.

The commissioner also scrutinised the progress of the North Wales Police Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Delivery Plan. NWP have adopted a refreshed framework, which outlines how they will protect women and girls from violence; pursue those who commit or seek to commit offences; prevent offences being committed; and prepare policing to continually improve the safety of women and girls on our communities.

Road safety data and enforcement was also looked at, and how NWP approach the issue of off-road motorcycles, e-bikes, and e-scooters.

Mr Dunbobbin said: “The Board provides me with the opportunity to scrutinise how the chief constable is performing in key areas.

“North Wales Police was an early adopter of Operation Soteria, and I wanted to get a full understanding of how the National Operating Model is being embedded in north Wales. Operation Soteria is critical in delivering real and sustained improvement and transformational change across the criminal justice system. Only by improving support for victims and ensuring more perpetrators are bought to justice will this be achieved. I will continually revisit the model and six pillars approach to improve justice outcomes for victims of rape and serious sexual offences.

“In February 2023, the Home Secretary included VAWG within the Strategic Policing Requirement (SPR), which sets out the national threats to public safety. This means that North Wales Police response to VAWG should be on a par with terrorism and serious and organised crime. I wanted to ensure North Wales Police is listening to victims and hearing their voices, so that the VAWG plan is working towards what matters for them. Excellent work has been achieved in recent times in this area, but there is always plenty more to do.

“In respect of road safety, north Wales has seen some significant reductions in the number of fatal casualties across the region, which have decreased by 19 per cent. I also heard about Operation Darwen, the all-Wales campaign which runs from early spring through until the autumn and is aimed at increasing awareness of motorcycle safety and reducing casualties on the roads. Another area I have received concern from the public is in relation to off-road motorcycles, e-bikes, and scooters. The police are developing ways to tackle when they are used for anti-social behaviour, an approach which I fully support.

“As PCC for North Wales, I want to again reassure the public that I will continue to scrutinise the Force performance and work closely with the chief constable to support the ongoing work.”