The Service Police complaints system
The process of making a complaint about the Service Police.
Introduction
The Service Police (Complaints etc.) Regulations came into force on Monday 19 June 2023. This means complaints about matters occurring on or after this date will now be handled under the new statutory procedures that are set out in the Regulations and are overseen by the independent Service Police Complaints Commissioner (SPCC).
Complaints about matters occurring before 19 June 2023 cannot be handled under the new statutory provisions. There are non-statutory arrangements in place to deal with existing Service Police complaints, which can be raised with the Service Police force’s Professional Standards Department. See JSP 849 for contact details.
Who deals with complaints about the Service Police?
Most complaints are dealt with directly by the Service Police forces, usually by the Service Police force’s Professional Standards Department (PSD).
If you complain directly to the SPCC, your complaint will be sent to the Service Police force (unless the SPCC considers there are exceptional circumstances that justify it not being sent). The Service Police force will assess your complaint and contact you about how it will be handled.
What must forces refer to the SPCC?
Service Police forces must refer certain serious allegations and incidents to the SPCC – for example, if someone dies or is seriously injured following contact with the Service Police or if an allegation is made that a member of the Service Police has seriously assaulted someone or committed a serious sexual offence.
How do you make a complaint?
If you’re unhappy about something that happened to you that involves the Service Police, you can make a complaint. Service Police forces need to know what’s wrong before they can try to make things better.
To make a complaint please use the Service Police Complaints Form.
What can you expect?
Service Police forces must handle complaints in a reasonable and proportionate way. This means doing what is appropriate in the circumstances, taking into account the facts and the context in which the complaint is raised.
What happens after you make a complaint?
If your complaint can be dealt with quickly by giving you some information or explaining what happened, then the Service Police force should do this.
If your complaint needs to be looked into further, the PSD will record your complaint and let you know they have done this.
Certain complaints must be formally recorded. You can also ask for your complaint to be formally recorded if you wish.
Once a complaint is recorded, it must be dealt with in accordance with the procedures set out in the Service Police (Complaints etc.) Regulations 2023.
Contacting you
The person dealing with your complaint should contact you to make sure they have all the details about your complaint. They should ask you what you want to happen. For example, you might want an apology, a problem to be put right, or the Service Police to be held responsible or learn from what went wrong.
The person dealing with your complaint will be able to tell you how they will deal with your complaint, and what is likely to happen as a result. For example, they may provide you with information or an explanation for what happened.
How will the Service Police force handle your complaint?
The Service Police force will assess your complaint and consider how to deal with your complaint in a reasonable and proportionate way.
Most complaints will be handled without an investigation. However, in some circumstances, the Service Police force or PSD will carry out an investigation into your complaint.
Most investigations are carried out by the Service Police force or PSD. The SPCC will only investigate the most serious cases, such as those involving a death or serious injury following contact with the Service Police.
Whether the complaint was handled with or without an investigation, you will be told the outcome. You should be given enough information to understand what has happened as a result of the handling of the complaint, and what decisions have been reached. In most instances where there has been an investigation, you will be given a copy of the investigation report.
What if you are still unhappy?
The Service Police force you complained to should send you a letter or email that tells you whether you have a right of review.
If you have this right of review, and you are unhappy with the outcome of your complaint, you have 28 days to apply for a review.
However, it is important to note that the relevant review body cannot reinvestigate your complaint. It can only assess whether the handling or the final outcome of your complaint was reasonable and proportionate.
To apply for a review please use the Application for Review for a Service Police Complaint Form.
How to find out more
This guide provides a short summary of the process and what you can expect from it. There is more detailed information in Service Police Complaints (JSP 849).