HMICFRS grades Tarian ROCU ‘Good’ at tackling serious and organised crime

Tarian, the Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) for southern Wales, has been graded ‘Good’ for its approach to tackling serious and organised crime, following the publication of an inspection report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

 

The inspection assessed the effectiveness of the collaborative policing response to serious and organised crime across the southern Wales region, which comprises South Wales Police, Gwent Police, Dyfed-Powys Police and Tarian ROCU.

 

This positive outcome reflects the dedication, professionalism and expertise of Tarian’s officers and staff, and the strength of the relationships they have built with colleagues across the three forces and partner agencies. Together, these partnerships underpin a coordinated and intelligence-led approach to protecting communities across southern Wales.

 

Published today, the report provides graded judgments and detailed findings on how Tarian ROCU and the three forces work together to investigate and disrupt organised criminal activity.

 

The report found that between 30 June 2024 and 30 June 2025, Tarian recorded 2,650 disruptions that had a tangible impact on serious and organised crime. Examples include arrests, the closure of drugs lines, and the safeguarding of vulnerable individuals. Compared to other ROCUs over the same period, this represents the second highest number of disruptions across England and Wales.

 

Across 2025, Tarian ROCU investigations led to the safeguarding of 1,488 children and 598 vulnerable adults, the arrest of 285 individuals, and combined custodial sentences totalling 320 years.

 

Within the report, inspectors praised Tarian’s highly effective working relationships with partner agencies and police forces, and its strong understanding of serious and organised crime threats across the region. They highlighted Tarian’s ability to work effectively with South Wales Police, Gwent Police, and Dyfed-Powys Police, ensuring a coordinated and intelligence-led approach to tackling organised criminality. This included recognition that collaboration between Tarian and the three forces began in 2003—six years prior to the formal establishment of the ROCU network in 2009.

 

Inspectors also recognised Tarian’s ability to develop and implement innovative approaches to policing. They acknowledged the work of Tarian’s Tackling Organised Exploitation (TOEX) team in developing new technology to automate and analyse large volumes of data, significantly reducing review times from weeks to as little as 30 minutes in some cases. This capability has enhanced investigative efficiency and enabled officers to act more quickly on intelligence.

 

Inspectors highlighted positive feedback from staff regarding Tarian’s commitment to workforce stability and wellbeing. This includes a strong focus on supporting and valuing its workforce, with its annual awards ceremony identified as an example of good practice that contributes to staff morale and retention. It also includes the establishment of a satellite office in Dyfed-Powys, which has enabled the organisation to attract talent from areas that may previously have been underrepresented due to travel constraints. Since its introduction, recruitment from the north-west of the region has increased by 75%.

 

The report further referenced Tarian as the only ROCU in the network to have a dedicated artificial intelligence (AI) coordinator. This was recognised as a proactive step in anticipating future challenges, acknowledging both the growing role of AI in policing and the increasing risk of its exploitation by organised criminals, while ensuring the unit remains well positioned to respond to emerging threats.

 

This focus on innovation and forward planning underpins Tarian’s commitment to continuous development. The report identifies areas for further improvement, recognised as opportunities to build on existing strengths. In collaboration with the inspectorate, forces and partners, work is already underway to address the following recommendations: that the ROCU and its constituent forces should combine processes for procuring specialist technical equipment, and that they should look at how serious and organised crime threats are recorded with a view to identifying more across a broader range of criminality. 

 

Addressing these recommendations will further enhance Tarian’s response, ensuring the organisation continues to evolve in line with its mission to protect southern Wales by tackling serious and organised crime, proactively pursuing offenders, and working with partners to educate and prepare communities.

 

Assistant Chief Constable for Tarian ROCU, Gemma Morris, said:

“Serious and organised crime causes significant harm to our communities, and we remain unwavering in our commitment to pursuing those who seek to exploit and endanger others.

“I would like to take this opportunity to recognise and thank Tarian officers and staff for their dedication and professionalism. I would also like to thank colleagues across South Wales Police, Gwent Police and Dyfed-Powys Police, as well as our partner agencies, whose continued support, collaboration and shared commitment have been fundamental to achieving this outcome.

“Much of the work undertaken in this area of policing is necessarily covert and often unseen by the public. This report provides an important opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of that work and the difference it makes in protecting our communities.

“We are pleased that inspectors have recognised many of our strengths, including our strong relationships with partners and our commitment to innovation. At the same time, we acknowledge that there are areas where we must continue to improve, and we are already taking forward plans to address the recommendations identified. Continuous improvement is central to our approach, and we will continue to work with our partners to strengthen our response.

“Our focus remains firmly on protecting the public. We will continue to work closely with our regional forces and partners to disrupt organised crime, safeguard those most at risk, and ensure that offenders are brought to justice, delivering on our mission to protect southern Wales and our vision to make it the safest region in the UK.”

 

The full report can be read here: An inspection of the Southern Wales regional response to serious and organised crime - His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services