The Independent Scrutiny and Oversight Board (ISOB), which monitors progress on the plan, published its report on Wednesday. It concluded that progress on tackling racism has been limited, inconsistent, and fragile, relying too much on individual goodwill rather than wholesale commitment from police leadership. Only six out of 44 police forces in England and Wales have publicly acknowledged institutional racism, and the report identified internal police culture as the most significant barrier to progress. Gavin Stephens, chair of the National Police Chiefs Council, said progress has been less than he expected, with substantial resistance from force heads, and noted that while he views policing as institutionally racist, most of his fellow chiefs, almost all of whom are white, disagree.
Criticism has been sharp, with the National Black Police Association calling the plan a £10 million failure. Recent statistics from 2024 show Black men were 2.4 times as likely to be arrested as white men, and Black people were 3.7 times more likely to be stopped and searched compared to white people.
The ISOB is being wound up, but the Police Race Action Plan will continue in a new guise with a strong operational focus on anti-racism, according to Gavin Stephens. However, it remains unclear what specific anti-racism measures the plan will focus on in its new form, and who will oversee progress after the ISOB's dissolution.