Help us keep the lights on Support us
The Bristol Cable

Racial bias growing in stop and search

City

While Avon and Somerset police have reduced the total number of stop an searches, the proportion of black people compared to white people increases.

Photo: Chris White (flickr: CC BY-NC-ND)


Overall the number of stop and searches has decreased dramatically in Avon and Somerset in recent years. In 2013 the force made 27,845 searches, a year later the figure had halved to 12,575. Figures for recent years are incomplete, but in the first half of 2016 the number of stop and searches was down to just 2,614, implying a five-fold reduction over three years.

However, despite this overall drop black people in the Bristol region are increasingly likely to be stopped and searched than their white counterparts in 2016. This is an increase in the proportion of black people stopped by the police, which has been consistent since 2014.

According to research by think-tank and campaign group Stopwatch, in 2015/16 black people were stopped and searched by the force at six times the rate of white people, up from five times in 2014/15. Meanwhile, people of mixed backgrounds were twice as likely to be searched than white people in 2015/16.
stop-and-search stats
There were also huge disparities across Avon and Somerset. In Somerset, 39 black people were stopped and searched for every one white person. Although, Somerset recorded the highest increase in the proportion of black to white stop and searches (up from 17:1 in 2015), all areas within Avon & Somerset recorded an increase.

The increasing proportion of black people being stopped and searched is  due to very large reductions in the number of white people being searched compared to relatively small decreases in black populations.

stop and search: somerset
Police data from April to September 2016  shows that of the 2,614 stop and searches conducted in the period, two thirds resulted in noting found and no further action taken, and fewer than one in ten stops led to an arrest.

Keep the Lights On

Investigative journalism strengthens democracy – it’s a necessity, not a luxury.

The Cable is Bristol’s independent, investigative newsroom. Owned and steered by more than 2,600 members, we produce award-winning journalism that digs deep into what’s happening in Bristol.

We are on a mission to become sustainable – will you help us get there?

Join now

What makes us different?

Comments

Report a comment. Comments are moderated according to our Comment Policy.

Post a comment

Mark if this comment is from the author of the article

By posting a comment you agree to our Comment Policy.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related content

Editorial: Why the Cable will be shining a light on child imprisonment

The Cable's investigations lead introduces our new long-term reporting strategy that puts impact at its heart – starting with a deep-dive on child prisons and exclusion from society.

Humiliation, trauma and mistrust: why we must scrap Section 60

The founder member of police accountability group Bristol Copwatch explains why the Avon and Somerset force must stop running racist and ineffective suspicionless stop-and-search operations.

Enduring trauma, and a struggle for justice: one year on from the Barton House high-rise evacuation

On 14 November 2023 an east Bristol tower block was evacuated over fears it could collapse, making national news. A year on, residents tell the Cable about the disruption to their lives, the ongoing impact on their wellbeing and their children's – and how a community has been left traumatised.

Listen: The Debrief – what a leaked police report revealed about racial inequalities in stop-and-search

A report leaked to the Cable showed the shocking fact that Black people are 25 times likelier to be strip-searched than white peers. Sean Morrison and Priyanka Raval ask what the findings say about police institutional racism.

Listen: People Just Do Something, with Jendayi Serwah on what reparations are and what real progress would look like

Reparations campaigner Jendayi Serwah explains what the term means, how it differs from other racial justice movements and how grassroots organisations are pushing for real change.

‘There’s a price to be paid’: one woman’s mission to highlight historic buildings’ slave trade links

Gloria Daniel has spent years tracing the connections between the UK’s built environment and its colonial trade in humans. An exhibition at Ashton Court and a new memorial in Bristol Cathedral are pushing back on hidden injustice.

Join our newsletter

Get the essential stories you won’t find anywhere else

Subscribe to the Cable newsletter to get our weekly round-up direct to your inbox every Saturday

Join our newsletter

Subscribe to the Cable newsletter

Get our latest stories & essential Bristol news
sent to your inbox every Saturday morning