Avon and Somerset Police ‘institutionally racist’, chief constable says

Sarah Crew, the Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Police, has stated that she believes her own force exhibits “institutional racism.” She said there is no doubt that racism and racial bias are perpetuated within various systems throughout the force. 

Ms Crew said: “We are not representative of the community we police. I am now owning the definition of institutional racism.

“This is recognition that the system is unfair, and our job is to make it fair.”

Crew examined her force’s performance based on Baroness Louise Casey’s criteria.

Active Discussions about racism have taken place within Avon and Somerset Police since Desmond Brown published his report identifying Disproportionality in the criminal justice system in the force area. His report showed evidence of a difference in the way the force interacted with people from different ethnic and racial backgrounds, particularly those who were from black heritage communities.

Crew said: “Since the report, we’ve been having active discussions and carefully working through Desmond’s recommendations to ensure that lessons are learnt.

“To make real change we need to work together, we need to be accountable and by admitting the truth we can start to make progress.

“I am hugely committed to build trust amongst all communities and this is an important step.”