FOI 645-2025 / June 2025 / Arrests
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REFERENCE NO: 645-2025
I write in connection with your request for information which was received on 23rd June 2025 as follows:
I wish to make a freedom of information request and would be grateful if you could supply the following information, broken down by nationality (note - in any instance where an certain nationality has fewer than 5 results, please use FOI best practice and simply provide the appropriate response of "<5") for the years 2018 – 2024
- The total number of arrests (and broken down by nationality) for each detailed offence within the following the offence groups: "violence against the person" and "sexual offences".
- The total number of arrests by your force (and broken down by nationality) that led to an individual being proceeded against for each detailed offence within the following offence groups: "violence against the person" and "sexual offences".
- If possible, I would also be grateful if you could disclose the number of arrests (2018 - 2024) for violence against the person which are a knife crime (broken down by nationality) as well as the number of cases that led to an individual being proceeded against (broken down by nationality).
Please find the Warwickshire Police response set out below.
Response: Please be advised that not all of the requested information is held in a readily retrievable format. With regard to Q3 of your request, there is no identifier within the Custody System to determine where an arrest falling under Violence against the person involved a knife. An analyst conducted searches for the number of arrests, recorded during the period 1st January 2018 to 31st December 2024, where the ‘Reason for Arrest’ related to Violence against the person and this returned 17,231 records. In order to ascertain the number of those arrests where the offence involved a knife, it would be necessary to review each and every one on an individual basis. As you will appreciate, such searches would involve an inordinate amount of time and would greatly exceed the amount to which we are legally required to respond, i.e., the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the ‘appropriate level’ as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004. For Police forces in the UK, the ‘appropriate limit’ is considered to be up to 18 hours of work on one request.
In accordance with Section 12(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, this letter acts as a Refusal Notice for this part of the request, and, if one part of a request exceeds the fees limit, then Section 12 of the Act applies to the whole request.
In accordance with Section 16 of the Act, I have a duty to provide advice and assistance in relation to refining your request. However, due to the extent of the searches required, I am unable to suggest a way to revise this element of your request into one which could be searched within the fees limit.
However, I can advise that were you to remove Q3, it may be possible to undertake searches in relation to Q1 and Q2 of your request within the fees limit based on the following:
- The total number of arrests (and broken down by nationality) for each detailed offence within the following the offence groups: "violence against the person" and "sexual offences".
Nationality of detainees can be provided for these offences where this has been recorded in the custody log.
- The total number of arrests by your force (and broken down by nationality) that led to an individual being proceeded against for each detailed offence within the following offence groups: "violence against the person" and "sexual offences".
This would be interpreted as the number of arrests that have led to a charge / postal requisition.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is as accurate as possible.
Your attention is drawn to the below which details your right of complaint.
Should you have any further enquiries concerning this matter, please write or email the Freedom of Information Unit quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information Officer
Freedom of Information Unit
Warwickshire Police
PO Box 4
Leek Wootton
Warwickshire
CV35 7QB