Police complaints handling: call for evidence
Independent review seeking to hear from those with direct involvement and experience of the system for handling complaints against the police.
An independent review is being carried out into the handling of complaints against the police.
The review, led by Dame Elish Angiolini, wants to hear about your experiences of police complaints.
The following questions have been put together to help you respond. This is not an exhaustive list of questions and you may include any points you wish to make.
If you have made a complaint about the police:
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what caused you to do so?
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were you able to find out easily how to make a complaint?
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did you have access to any necessary support?
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did you feel that you had appropriate opportunities to get your case across and receive a fair hearing?
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what were the best and worst aspects of your experience of the process for progressing your complaint?
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how could your experience have been improved?
If you are or were a police officer who has been subject to a complaint, investigation or misconduct process:
- what was your experience?
- were you able to gain an appropriate understanding of the issues facing you?
- did you have access to any support?
- did you feel that you had appropriate opportunities to get your case across and receive a fair hearing?
- what were the best and worst aspects of your experience?
- how could your experience have been improved?
If you represent or have worked for an organisation which deals with the operational and procedural aspects of complaints handling, investigations or misconduct:
- what do you perceive to be the relative strengths and weaknesses of that organisation’s remit, powers, procedures, guidance and culture?
- what is the interaction with the public or with other relevant organisations and how could it be improved?
For all respondents :
- what do you perceive to be the strengths and weaknesses of the current arrangements for complaints handling, investigations and misconduct issues in relation to policing in Scotland?
- how can the strengths be embedded and enhanced?
- what is the impact of the weaknesses, how do they arise, and how can they best be addressed?
- do you have particular examples of good practice or bad practice from which lessons could be learned?
Other questions
- do you have experience of any other arrangements for dealing with such issues (e.g. police complaints in different places/times, or complaints in different areas of the public sector)? If so, can you please outline any relevant differences and specify potential benefits
- how do systems for police complaints handling, investigations and misconduct issues currently relate to systems for handling internal grievances and whistle‑blowing? Are any necessary distinctions clear and effective? Do changes need to be made?
- what is the proper balance, while cases are on-going, between the requirements for transparency and for confidentiality? What factors might lead to a failure to strike that balance, and what can be done to address them?
This is not an exhaustive list of questions, so please include any other points you wish to make.
Ways to respond
You can:
- respond online
- complete the attached respondent information form and email this along with your response to: secretariat@independentpolicingreview.scot
Or you can send it by post to:
Secretary to the Independent Policing Review
Room 1W.01
St. Andrew’s House
Regent Road
EDINBURGH
EH1 3DG
Contact
Contact the independent review team:
- by email at: secretariat@independentpolicingreview.scot
- by telephone on 0131 244 7055
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