Confidence up but knife crime and domestic abuse are concerns in Nottinghamshire Police update

Public confidence in Nottinghamshire Police is showing early signs of recovery after four years of decline, according to the latest performance update to be presented to the Police and Crime Panel next week.

The report, covering the first quarter of the 2025/26 financial year, sets out progress against the Police and Crime Plan 2025–29, which prioritises “Communities and Victims First,” “Strengthening Partnership Working,” and “Effective and Resilient Policing.”

Public Confidence

Overall confidence in policing now stands at 50.6%, up slightly from the start of the year, marking the first consecutive quarterly rise since the post-Covid peak in March 2021. Excluding those who said they were neither confident nor unconfident, confidence rises to 74.4%.

However, this still sits 1.3 percentage points below the March 2024 baseline and 3.8 points behind target, leaving much work to do.

Confidence among minority ethnic communities has dipped more sharply, from 58.9% in June 2024 to 56.2% by June 2025. Meanwhile, confidence among disabled residents has grown modestly (+1.9 points), bucking the wider trend.

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Satisfaction with police service stands at 56.2%, six points above baseline, though the proportion believing police “do a good job” lingers at just 45.4%.

Anti-Social Behaviour

Police-recorded anti-social behaviour incidents fell sharply, down 17.6% in the year to June 2025, continuing a sustained decline. Yet public perception tells a different story: 65.1% of residents reported experiencing ASB in the last year, a rise of more than five percentage points on baseline.

Police say targeted hotspot patrols, the new ASB Triage Officer pilot (a national first), and the Immediate Justice Scheme—where offenders perform community reparation—are beginning to bear fruit.

Drug-related concerns, however, are rising. Drug use and dealing as a local issue climbed three points to 32.2%, while police-recorded drug offences rose 6.4% year-on-year.

Neighbourhood Policing

Neighbourhood policing has been bolstered by a 33.5% increase in officer numbers compared to baseline, reaching 284 officers by June 2025. PCSOs, however, have fallen by nearly 8%, and the Special Constabulary has dropped to 80—15% lower than a year ago.

•  Rushcliffe police inspector updates the community September 2025

Community campaigns run through Crimestoppers, such as “Safer Bulwell and Clifton” and “Cancelling County Lines” in St Ann’s and Ashfield, delivered 575 actionable reports between April and June, including five urgent cases involving drugs, firearms and knives.

Victims’ Services

Victim Care services reached 14,955 people, a 43% rise on the previous year. Satisfaction among those supported remains remarkably high at 99.7%.

Victim satisfaction with frontline police service is more mixed, standing at 52.8%—slightly below last year but still above the baseline.

Hate Crime and Stop-and-Search

Police-recorded hate crimes have risen slightly (+4.1%), alongside a 12% rise in hate-related non-crime incidents. The repeat victimisation rate, however, fell to 15%, its lowest in recent years.

Stop-and-search use continues to fall, down 11.9% in the last year and more than 20% from baseline. Despite this, the proportion yielding positive results improved slightly to 38.8%.

Knife Crime and Serious Violence

Knife-enabled violence remains a concern. Police recorded 813 violent knife crimes in the year to June, slightly down on last year but above baseline. The positive outcome rate for these offences, however, dropped to 19.4%.

Possession of weapons offences rose by 8.2%, attributed partly to new legislation expanding the list of banned knives and police seizure powers.

Homicide rates (based on a rolling three-year average) stand at 11.3 cases, up 5.6% on baseline. However, actual year-on-year cases fell from five in 2023/24 to two in 2024/25.

Modern slavery offences jumped 24%, and child criminal exploitation referrals rose 10.6%, reflecting both improved scrutiny and rising demand.

Violence Against Women and Girls

Domestic abuse crimes reached 18,061, up 9.2% on baseline. Repeat victimisation fell slightly, while Domestic Violence Protection Orders surged by 66% in a year, and use of the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme increased by 74%.

Rape and serious sexual offences also increased, with 3,908 reports in the last 12 months (+10.6% on baseline). Police say new training under Operation Soteria is improving cultural understanding and investigative standards. Charge rates for these offences rose to 8.7%, up three points year-on-year.

Response Times 999

Emergency 999 call performance improved, with 91.3% answered within target times and abandoned rates down to just 0.3%. By contrast, non-emergency 101 calls continue to fall, with demand shifting online. Online crime reporting rose 30%, with over 10,000 offences logged digitally.

Officer numbers have dipped slightly to 2,384, though staff strength rose to 1,464. Police cadets increased to 120, but volunteer numbers have plummeted by two-thirds in two years, now standing at just 27.

Outcomes

Positive outcomes for all crimes reached 17.2%, close to the 17.7% ambition. For victim-based crimes, positive outcomes remain steady at 14.2%. Charge/summons rates for victim-based offences rose 3.6% year-on-year, supported by dedicated burglary and robbery teams and closer CPS collaboration.