Public Perceptions of Policing and the Criminal Justice System.

YouGov Study

published on 20 March 2026

Bedfordshire Police ranked 4th worse police force in England and Wale by public at dealing with crime.

Found that people in England and Wales have low confidence in the overall law and order system, although trust is higher for frontline police officers and judges than for senior police leaders.

Key findings

• 62% trust ordinary police officers and judges to make the right decisions.

• Trust falls to 48% for senior police officers, with many respondents describing senior leadership as “out of touch,” politically driven, or lacking frontline experience.

• Confidence in police effectiveness is low:

  • 53% believe police can investigate major crimes effectively.

  • Only 14% think police properly investigate minor crimes.

• Confidence in the courts also drops when sentencing is considered:

  • 51% trust courts to reach the correct verdict.

  • Only 37% believe sentences are appropriate.

• The prison system receives even lower ratings:

  • 39% trust prisons to keep offenders securely detained.

  • Just 13% believe rehabilitation systems prevent reoffending.

Main criticisms of policing

Respondents commonly said police forces suffer from:

• Understaffing and lack of resources

• Poor investigation of lower-level crimes

• Weak leadership and internal culture

• Lack of visible neighbourhood policing

Many people argued that officers are rarely seen in local communities and that this harms trust and crime prevention.

Perceptions of police performance

Only:

• 37% think police do a good job investigating crime.

• 25% think they are good at reducing crime.

The worst-rated area was community visibility:

• 72% say police perform badly at maintaining a visible local presence.

Only one in five people had seen police in their area during the previous week.

Regional confidence in police forces

Public confidence varies by police force area:

• Best-rated: Cumbria, Cheshire, and Dyfed-Powys police (though scores were only slightly positive).

• Worst-rated: Metropolitan Police, City of London Police, West Midlands Police, Greater Manchester Police and Bedfordshire Police.

Urban police forces generally scored lowest.

Attitudes toward AI in policing

Despite wider concerns about AI, most people support its use in policing for:

• Data analysis (65%)

• Crime mapping (65%)

• Live facial recognition (55%)

However, people are divided about using AI in everyday police functions overall.

Views on policing reforms

Awareness of PCCs remains extremely low:

• 94% of respondents could not name their local PCC.

Overall conclusion

The study shows widespread dissatisfaction with the law and order system in England and Wales. The public generally trusts individual frontline officers more than senior leadership, and many believe policing suffers from underfunding, weak visibility in communities, and poor handling of everyday crime. At the same time, there is public openness to reforms and to the use of AI technology in policing.

See Full Article https://yougov.com/en-gb/articles/54367-attitudes-to-policing-and-the-wider-law-and-order-system