Cumbria Constabulary’s Firearms Licencing Department has cleared their backlog of non-complex firearms applications.
Cumbria has set itself ambitious targets going forward - all new, non-complex renewals will be completed in eight weeks and non-complex grants in 12 weeks.
Concerns were raised around firearms licencing delays to Cumbria’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (Commissioner), David Allen, during his election campaign. Once elected, the Commissioner took a strong interest in monitoring the backlogs and holding the force to account in respect of performance within the department. Early into his appointment the Commissioner met with the Chief Officer team to ask them what they were doing to rectify the issue and to ensure that going forward it did not happen again.
Following this extensive work was undertaken by the Constabulary, who placed significant extra resource into the department and provided a clear action plan and timescale to reduce the backlog. With the non-complex application backlog now resolved, the focus will now turn to the backlog of complex applications. The backlog on complex cases – meaning those where concerns were raised around medical issues or on-going police enquiries – will take somewhat longer as Cumbria Police need to ensure all applicants are safe to own a firearm, which means in some cases they will be denied, due to medical, criminal or other issues.
Speaking around the clearing of the backlog, Commissioner David Allen, said: “Throughout my campaign to become your Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, the public repeatedly told me of their concerns around delays in process leading to them not receiving the necessary documentation to allow them to legally maintain their firearms.
“This put our legally abiding firearms holders at risk through no fault of their own. I saw this as unacceptable and as something that needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency which is why I prioritised it as soon as I began my term in Office to raise it with the Chief Constable. I am pleased to report that the Chief Constable also saw the issue as unacceptable and resolved to sort it out asap, which he and his staff have done.
“On the 10 May, there were 1,795 non-complex open applications. The backlog of non-complex applications has now been cleared. I am pleased to see that the Constabulary have dedicated the necessary resources to reach these goals.
The Chief Constable has assured me that going forward 100% of new non-complex renewals will be completed in eight weeks and non-complex grants in 12 weeks.”
“If you have applied for a licence and this is not your experience, I want you to let me know. I am your voice within Policing and it is my job to hold the Chief Constable to account on your behalf – if you are still waiting for a licence renewal and – to your knowledge – there should be no reason for the delay, contact me through my Office on 01768 217734 or at commissioner@cumbria-pcc.gov.uk. I will raise this appropriately with the Chief Constable and his staff. If I, or the force, don’t know about issues you are experiencing, we cannot help you or explain why there is or may be a delay, so please do contact me and my office”.
“I want to formally apologise to those of you who had previously experienced these unacceptable delays in obtaining your certificates and to thank you for your patience and understanding whilst we dealt with the issues. We have worked with certificate holders, applicants and the various industry experts involved in firearms matters, to ensure what we have created will attain and keep to best practice standards”.
“I will continue to hold the Chief Constable to account in respect of firearms licensing, as I do in respect of other routine policing matters, with formal scrutiny taking place via my Public Accountability Conference (PAC) and I know he is, in turn, holding his staff to account on the challenging performance indicators he has set going forward. I am happy with this approach.”
Chief Constable Rob Carden, Cumbria Constabulary, said: “A significant amount of work has been conducted by the Constabulary to clear the backlog of non-complex firearms applications and I am grateful for the efforts of those involved in achieving this.
“I apologise for the impact that delays have had on those affected. The impact this had on people is why I made the decision to place additional resources within the Firearms Licensing Department to reduce the backlog as swiftly as possible.
“I would also like to reassure firearms licence holders that we have robust plans in place to ensure that this does not happen again.
“Work remains ongoing to reduce the backlog of complex applications which are subject of thorough assessment.”
If you wish to report to police you can do so online at Report a crime | Cumbria Police. You can also phone on 101. Always phone 999 in an emergency or if a crime is in progress.