West Yorkshire Police have been criticised at a senior level in an independent inspection of how the Force records crimes and other incidents.

HM Inspectorate of Constabulary looked at how all 43 police forces in England and Wales recorded crime, to ensure the public is getting accurate information.

It found that three-quarters of forces made correct decisions on recording crime at least 90 per cent of the time, but there were wide variations.

HMIC assessed 240 incidents which had been logged by West Yorkshire Police, of which 24 were found to have been wrongly closed without a crime being recorded. However, this still indicated that the Force generally recorded crimes accurately.

But there was particular concern about the recording of incidents of violence and anti-social behaviour.

The watchdog said that crime evaluators ensured that crime reports were mostly classified correctly, but the Force would benefit from putting more information into its incident logs.

HMIC said most crime records examined showed good investigation standards.

But the Force did not appear to have a strategy and policy for delivering the quality incident and crime data that it needs.

The inspection report concluded West Yorkshire Police had “only limited arrangements at a senior level to secure the quality of incident and crime data in West Yorkshire, with uncertain plans, policies and strategies.”

As a result, there were variable standards around recording crimes and incidents in a consistent and accurate manner.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “The majority of the data examined by HMIC was found to be accurate, and likewise the quality of the investigation into crime was also considered to be of a good standard.

“We note the areas for improvement identified by HMIC, but would simply point out that any investment of extra resources in these administrative processes must be balanced with our desire to preserve the frontline services we offer to the public.”