BLACK people in Cheshire are seven times more likely to be stopped and searched by the police than white people.

Data from the Home Office highlights that black people in the county are disproportionately stopped and searched by police.

Between March 2021 and 2022, 127 black people were subject to 'stop and search' by Cheshire Police.

Northwich Guardian: Cheshire Police are more likely to 'stop and search' black people in the county than white peopleCheshire Police are more likely to 'stop and search' black people in the county than white people (Image: Newsquest)

This means that for every 1,000 black people in Cheshire, 38.9 had been subject to 'stop and search.'

Comparatively, for every 1,000 white people in the county, only 5.4 were stopped by police.

This means that black people in the county are more than seven times as likely to be stopped and searched by Cheshire Police.

Black people in Cheshire are also more likely to be arrested after 'stop and search' by police, with 26 per cent of searches leading to an arrest - this compares to 16.3 per cent of searches of white people leading to an arrest.

Emmanuelle Andrews, policy and campaigns manager at Liberty, a human rights charity, said: “Stop and search is a traumatic and distressing experience, leaving a lasting impact on both individuals and communities.

"Not only this but stop and search is an ineffective policing tool – with these figures showing that the vast majority of stops result in no further action."

Northwich Guardian: Black people face a higher rate of arrest from stop and search, tooBlack people face a higher rate of arrest from stop and search, too (Image: Newsquest)

Cheshire Police have shown signs of remedying these disparities; in 2020-21, black people were more than 10 times as likely to be stopped and searched than white people - in 2021-22 this fell to seven times as likely.

This remains higher than the national average, with black people across England and Wales being six times as likely to be stopped and searched.

When quizzed about these figures by the Guardian, Cheshire Police Superintendent Sarah Heath said: "National statistics show you are more likely to be stopped and searched if you are black, that’s why our processes are rightly scrutinised, and we have external governance groups who monitor and advise us to make sure we are getting it right.

"Cheshire as a whole is a region of low BAME [Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic] residents when compared to other neighbouring metropolitan areas, such as Manchester and Merseyside, and this impacts our figures.

“Of those who identified as black/black British stopped between the period December 2020 to November 2021, almost half were not from Cheshire. On many occasions, this will have been a pre-emptive stop-check based on intelligence received from other force areas."

Northwich Guardian: Superintendent Heath accepted that black people are more likely to be stopped in Cheshire than white peopleSuperintendent Heath accepted that black people are more likely to be stopped in Cheshire than white people (Image: Newquest)

Supt. Heath added: "We have independent panels made up of a diverse representation of local people living in the county. The panels, called the Community Cohesion Groups, are based in each local policing area.

"There is then the countywide Police Accountability Meeting led by an independent chairperson and also consisting of local people across the county.

"These panels oversee the scrutiny of our data and officers’ actions - whether that’s stop and search, use of force, equality and diversity or response to hate crime."

Supt. Heath says she hopes that Cheshire Police continues to face scrutiny and is held to account for its actions.