WEST Yorkshire Police (WYP) has been judged one of the best police services in the country.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) graded WYP’s performance across 10 areas of policing and found the force was ‘outstanding’ in four areas, ‘good’ in four areas and ‘adequate’ in two areas.

In publishing the report on Wednesday, Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Andy Cooke said: “I congratulate WYP on its excellent performance in keeping people safe and reducing crime.

"I have graded the force as outstanding in four areas of policing, which properly reflects its high level of performance in a challenging policing environment.”

WYP Chief Constable John Robins QPM said: “This is the best inspection report in the Force’s history.

"It is all the more impressive considering we are one of the largest and most complex police force areas in the UK and we also hold more national and regional responsibilities than any other force in the country.

“The women and men of WYP deserve the credit for this outstanding performance.

"It is the police officers, staff and volunteers who day in, day out are delivering the best possible service they can to victims, witnesses and those who need our help.

"They do this whilst under significant financial, resourcing and demand pressures.”

HMICFRS has stated that the Force is 'Outstanding' at preventing crime and anti-social behaviour; 'Outstanding' at treating the public with fairness and respect; 'Outstanding' at disrupting serious and organised crime; ‘Outstanding’ at providing value for money.

They have graded the Force as 'Good' at how it responds to the public, 'Good' at protecting vulnerable people, 'Good' at managing offenders and suspects, and also 'Good' at supporting its workforce.

It's also been recognised that despite having some of the highest demands nationally, the Force’s call handling and deployment processes are 'Adequate' and that it effectively pursues offenders and suspects to protect the public from harm.

In the last HMICFRS report into Crime Recording Practices, WYP was one of only five forces in the country to be graded as ‘Outstanding’ at crime-recording accuracy, putting victims are at the forefront of the force’s crime-recording arrangements.

Mr Robins added: “There are always areas for improvement, always more to be done, and we constantly strive to be even better than we are.

“The inspection report shows clearly that police officers, staff and volunteers across West Yorkshire are working really hard to protect the public.”