The Police Ombudsman's Office and the Northern Ireland Policing Board have today (22 February) launched two new reports on the attitudes to policing of people within the local black and minority ethnic and lesbian, gay and bisexual communities.
The reports summarise the views of over 700 people surveyed last year - over 500 from black and ethnic minority communities and more than 200 lesbian, bisexual and gay people.
Most respondents to both surveys felt that the Police Ombudsman treats police officers and complainants fairly and can help improve policing.
And a significant majority also stated that the Police Ombudsman's Office was "necessary" - 76% of respondents from ethnic minority groups who had heard of the office and 74% from the lesbian, bisexual and gay communities voiced this opinion.
Respondents from black and ethnic minority communities were six times more likely to believe that the Office would improve policing than wouldn't (59% thought it would, 9% disagreed, 32% did not know)
Among lesbian, bisexual and gay groups, 51% of respondents thought the Office would help police do a good job, compared to 11% who felt it would not.
Gay, lesbian and bisexual people who took part in the survey were much more likely to have heard of the Office than those from ethnic minorities. While 83% of lesbian, gay and bisexual respondents had heard of the Office, just 25% of people from ethnic minority groups had done so.
The lowest levels of awareness were among people with poor English and those not permanently resident in Northern Ireland.
The Police Ombudsman, Mrs Nuala O'Loan, said: "There is clearly a widespread acceptance that we are independent of the police, that we treat complainants and officers fairly and that our work can help the police do a good job."
She said the recommendations contained in the reports would help her office provide an even higher level of service to gay, bisexual and ethnic minority communities in Northern Ireland.
"I need to make sure that my Office is accessible and responsive to the needs of all sections of our society. These reports and the insights they provide are valuable in helping us achieve that goal.
"Their recommendations are now being addressed by my Office, through for example, a planned programme of diversity training and a new community outreach strategy."
The research was conducted on behalf of the Policing Board and the Office of the Police Ombudsman by the Institute for Conflict Research. The research involved questionnaires, focus groups, one-to-one interviews, interviews with representatives of policing organisations and liaison with ethnic minority and gay, lesbian and bisexual groups.
ENDS