IOPC rebuts Police Federation claims

The IOPC has made significant achievements in improving the timeliness of investigations and many of the delays which can occur are outside of our control. It is disappointing and misleading that the Police Federation has chosen not to reflect this in the information they have provided.

Since becoming the IOPC, we’ve completed more than 1,350 investigations and 90% are now completed within 12 months.

In addition to taking on around 700 new investigations of police conduct each year and improving the timeliness of those, of the 538 investigations inherited from the IPCC, only three investigations remain and are near to completion.

If we find a police officer has a case to answer for misconduct, we make a recommendation(s) to the relevant force who are then responsible for considering our recommendations and any subsequent action. This is the end of our investigation - 90% are completed within 12 months.

We do not determine dates for misconduct hearings which are arranged by police forces, or criminal proceedings which are set by the courts and Crown Prosecution Service.

The Federation are often party to these proceedings and will be aware that the IOPC does not determine these dates.

That is also why new legislative reforms, which the IOPC called for, were implemented in February last year to further improve timeliness.

A small number of the 700 investigations we start each year take longer than 12 months. These are complex investigations, often looking at historical allegations and can be delayed by concurrent inquests or criminal proceedings, legal challenges and other complications which can delay an investigation.

Everyone in the police complaints system has a responsibility to work together to improve timeliness – including police forces, the Federation, the CPS and other parties.

We recognise the impact of lengthy investigations on police officers, complainants and families and that is why we are committed to working across the complaints and discipline system to improve the timeliness of our investigation as well as associated processes determined by others.

Our investigations also highlight learning and recommendations which help drive improvements to policing practice. Further details can be found in our Impact Report.