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Abstract

This dissertation explores whether a link can be shown between levels of stop and search for offensive weapons conducted by the police under section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) and levels of knife related offending. It also examines the accuracy of recording of all section 1 PACE searches by the police. Ten sample police forces from within England and Wales were selected, providing representation from each of the ten regions defined by the Home Office. Using secondary data for a period of 10 years between 2010/2011 and 2019/2020, obtained from the Office of National Statistics, the levels of stop and search for offensive weapons were obtained and also the levels of police recorded knife related offending. Primary data was collected on the accuracy of police recording of searches by use of an online survey, with officers from Thames Valley Police providing the sample pool. The survey showed that recording of stop and search was over 97% accurate, with the exception of searches recorded when an arrest was made which fell to just under 93%. This paper found that no consistent pattern or connection between levels of stop and search for offensive weapons and levels of knife related offending was shown. Each force examined showed a contrasting pattern in the rise and fall of stop and search and although all forces showed an increase in knife related offending there was a wide range in the level of this rise. When viewing data for all ten forces together the extremes are removed and the fall in stop and search is contrasted by a rise in knife crime. When national data for all forces in England and Wales, and for all section 1 PACE searches, is compared against levels of knife related offending a larger decrease in overall searches is seen against a larger increase in levels of knife crime. Further research is needed into this connection to establish the impact of a decrease in searches which are not targeted at knife related offending but may impact on levels of these offences.

Course: Crime and Criminology - BSc (Hons) - C2113P

Date Deposited: 2021-11-05

URI/permalink: https://library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis13726.html