If you complain about Wiltshire Police and ask for a review, the reviewing body found the force's original outcome was not reasonable and proportionate in 26.2% of 61 completed reviews in 2024/25, the 14th highest of 43 forces and 1.7 points above the national figure of 24.5%. Wiltshire Police recorded 6,955 stop and searches between 2023-07 to 2026-06, and 63.0% ended in no further action.

26.2%

of completed reviews found Wiltshire Police's own complaint outcome was not reasonable and proportionate

IOPC, 2024/25. 16 of 61 reviews.

516

complaint cases per 1,000 employees

IOPC, 2024/25. 1,331 cases, 2,578 employees.

63%

of stop and searches ended in no further action

data.police.uk, 2023-07 to 2026-06. 4,176 of 6,629 recorded outcomes.

174

searches involved removal of more than outer clothing

data.police.uk, 2023-07 to 2026-06.

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Recorded use of force by Wiltshire Police has risen 274.6% since 2020/21, from 2,253 reports to 8,440.

Source: Home Office use of force statistics, 2024/25. Figures as published; see the tables on this page for the full denominators.

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Before you share this. This is a statistic reproduced from an official publication, not an allegation against any officer or force, and not a finding of wrongdoing. Share it with the source attached, which is why the source is included in the share text. Do not add claims of your own to it, what you write alongside a figure is yours, not ours, and you are responsible for it. Numbers are as published at the date shown and may be restated later by the body that published them.

Complaints about Wiltshire Police

Complaint cases logged	1,331
Employees	2,578
Cases per 1,000 employees	516.3 (7th of 44)
Review applications to the local policing body	36
Review applications to the IOPC	27

Where reviews found the outcome was not reasonable and proportionate

Route	Reviews completed	Outcome overturned	Rate
Local policing body, complaint not investigated	30	6	20.0%

Stop and search by Wiltshire Police

Searches recorded	6,955
Period	2023-07 to 2026-06
Months of data	36 of 36
Ended in no further action	63.0%
More than outer clothing removed	174

What Wiltshire Police searched people for

Stated object of search	Searches
Controlled drugs	4,072
Offensive weapons	1,282
Stolen goods	808
Article for use in theft	176
Articles for use in criminal damage	172

Who Wiltshire Police searched

Officer-defined ethnicity	Searches	Share
White	4,743	82.3%
Black	609	10.6%
Asian	352	6.1%
Other	58	1.0%

Calculated over the 5,762 searches where an officer recorded an ethnicity, which is 82.8% of all searches by this force.

Compared with who lives in the Wiltshire Police area

Ethnic group	Share of searches	Share of residents	Ratio
Black	10.6%	1.6%	6.6x
Asian	6.1%	5.1%	1.2x
Other	1.0%	0.9%	1.1x
White	82.3%	90.3%	0.9x

What this ratio is and is not. It compares the share of searches to the share of people resident in this force area at the 2021 Census. It takes no account of who is present in a place rather than living there, which matters most in city centres and transport hubs. A ratio above one means a group is searched more often than its resident share, and that is a pattern requiring explanation, not evidence of discrimination in itself. Groups under 0.5% of the resident population are omitted because the figure becomes unstable. Every force compared.

Recording gaps. Wiltshire Police did not record officer-defined ethnicity for 17.2% over this period. Percentages on this page are calculated only over the records where the relevant field was actually recorded.

Use of force by Wiltshire Police

Year	Use of force reports	Relative volume
2020/21	2,253
2021/22	2,518
2022/23	2,297
2023/24	4,422
2024/25	8,440

Recorded use of force by Wiltshire Police has risen 274.6% since 2020/21. Nationally the total rose 39.4% over the same period, so this force is rising faster than the national trend.

Taser use

Total recorded Taser uses	458
Of which discharged	54
Share actually discharged	11.8%

Most recorded Taser use is drawing, aiming or red-dotting rather than firing. The share actually discharged is the figure worth knowing.

Complaining to Wiltshire Police

Complaints go to the force first. Use its own official channel so the complaint is recorded properly and you get written confirmation.

Wiltshire Police official websiteSource: data.police.uk
Telephone: 101Non-emergency number. Always call 999 in an emergency.

Build a complaint letter for Wiltshire Police

What you can do about it

Complaining to a force and bringing a claim against it are different processes with different outcomes. Reviews overturn the force's own finding in roughly a quarter of cases nationally, which makes the review stage worth understanding before you use it.

How to complain about the police

Wiltshire Police in the news

The five most recent reports mentioning this force, collected automatically. Headlines and links belong to the publishers named. We do not edit, summarise or endorse them, and inclusion here does not imply any finding against anyone.

Bradford on Avon gas leak: Shops evacuated and roads closed BBC · 29 Aug 2026
Multiple roads closed in Wiltshire town after potential 'gas leak' Wiltshire Times · 29 Aug 2026
Police investigate 'assault' in Swindon's Old Town Swindon Advertiser · 29 Aug 2026
“Damage and distress” caused by hare coursing remains key priority following court hearing Salisbury And Avon · 28 Aug 2026
Urgent search launched after 14-year-old girl goes missing Wiltshire Times · 28 Aug 2026

Sources

Independent Office for Police Conduct, police complaints statistics for England and Wales, 2024/25.
data.police.uk stop and search API, 2023-07 to 2026-06. Accessed 2026-08-29.
Home Office police use of force statistics, England and Wales, 2024/25.

Data last refreshed 29 August 2026, covering 2023-07 to 2026-06. Every figure on this page is recomputed from the source datasets, not edited by hand. Found something wrong? Tell us.