Devon & Cornwall Federation response to report into 2024 riots across the UK

18 December 2024

Devon & Cornwall officers policed the summer riots with “bravery, commitment and dedication” even while being assaulted, the Chair of Devon & Cornwall Police Federation has said.

Nick Jones was speaking following the publication of a report from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), which praised officers’ “immense bravery in the face of extreme violence” but criticised forces for being unprepared and not doing enough to look after officers’ wellbeing.

Nick said: “Without question, we faced challenging times during the riots in Devon and Cornwall this summer, with the main disorder centring around Plymouth. The violent protests and public disorder were high-risk, and our officers were subjected to sustained verbal and physical assault.

“Officers displayed bravery, commitment and dedication to their duties as they dealt with the disorder in Plymouth. They helped restore order and calm to our communities in an appropriate, proportionate and professional way, which was well-received by the vast majority of people in those communities.”

He added: “The Federation is always committed to ensuring officer safety when members go about their duties, and this was an extremely volatile time.”

Nick acknowledged that the force's intelligence assessments did not predict the potential disorder well enough, but said that it overcame logistical challenges to deploy a large number of officers.

He said: “Our force faces daily challenges, some of which require an immediate response, and others that are intelligence-led and undergo extensive planning.

“Information and intelligence forms an important part of assessing threat, risk and harm, and on this occasion, the intelligence picture could have been smarter. Although we must always be wary of the possibility of false information and the ability of individuals to disrupt and distort intelligence.”

He continued: “There was an unprecedented policing need, and a number of resources were deployed. Given the considerable geographical area that our force covers, that took some time to plan, implement and execute.”

The HMICFRS report said that some police commanders initially deployed officers in standard uniform with no PPE, which could have left officers vulnerable to injury. Public-order officer training also needed improvement, HMICFRS said, and there should be better use of the National Police Wellbeing Service.

Nick responded: “We will always reflect and learn lessons following such situations, and deploying officers with the appropriate PPE is an important aspect. But there is no doubt that officers showed immense bravery and resilience in the most challenging of environments until suitable resources could be deployed to control areas where a minority had chosen disorder over peaceful protest.”