The National Confidence Target
A new national confidence target was introduced in March 2009 with the aim of increasing public confidence throughout England and Wales by 15% over three years. By tackling crime and anti-social behaviour issues that matter to people locally it is anticipated that the level of confidence will rise nationally to an average of 60% by 31st March 2012.
Due to its already higher than average confidence levels, Cumbria has been set an interim target of 60.8% to be achieved by 31st March 2011, and a final target of 64.8% by 31st March 2012. Performance against this target is measured using the British Crime Survey, which is conducted on behalf of the Home Office and involves face-to-face interviews with members of the public rather than telephone surveys which have been used in this case. Care should be taken when comparing the results from these different survey methods.
It must be borne in mind that the national confidence question supposes that crime and antisocial behaviour exists in all communities to some extent, and therefore everyone surveyed is able to say whether they believe the police and local councils are dealing with these issues. In Cumbria, we have found that many respondents in low crime areas feel that they are unable to make an informed judgement and therefore not in a position to either agree or disagree with the statement. This must be taken into account when assessing the results.