Recommendation 55

The lack of evidence available about the effectiveness of stop and search in reducing serious violence crime has contributed to scepticism about the basis for using the powers and therefore a lack of confidence in them. The Home Office should fill this evidential gap by commissioning a fully independent and comprehensive research study of stop and search tactics to better inform policy decisions at a central and local level. That study should necessarily focus on, but not be limited to, the effect of different stop and search powers on levels of crime; locality type (urban, rural); the type of stop deployed; the grounds and find rate. We advise that any such study should be longitudinal in design to allow researchers to map and identify trends over time with the expectation that they share regular updates in the interests of transparency and public scrutiny.