Scrutiny meeting reveals measures police are taking to improve public confidence

At his most recent public scrutiny meeting, Police and Crime Commissioner John Dwyer asked senior officers how Cheshire Constabulary was ensuring the integrity and suitability of its officers and staff.

He also sought reassurances that the Constabulary was not failing women and girls as highlighted in Baroness Casey’s recent review of the Metropolitan Police.

While that review was focused only on one force, the Commissioner was keen to understand how the culture was different in Cheshire and how cases of serious unacceptable behaviour are dealt with if they do arise.

Conduct issues that had arisen from the review into the Metropolitan Police were how they dealt with vulnerable people, particularly women and girls, the content of whatsapp chats between certain officers, and the way that complaints of sexual assault had been handled.

The meeting heard how Cheshire Constabulary’s induction process has been further strengthened, including assessing the emotional competency of new recruits to work with vulnerable people and ensuring consistent training and development in this area throughout their careers.

New recruits are also left in no doubt as to the consequences of misusing social media and messaging apps like whatsapp, with regular training from the Professional Standards Department (PSD) on correct use of social media in line with the code of ethics. All new recruits are given a Constabulary-issued phone which they are expected to use for work business, with whatsapp and social media restricted for everyone except those in roles where they are required.

On the serious issue of sexual assault and domestic abuse within the police, the Constabulary outlined its internal policy on dealing with police-perpetrated domestic abuse and revealed that it was going back over three years of ‘prejudicial and improper behaviour’ allegations to ensure action taken was appropriate.

The Constabulary has also been supporting the historical ‘data wash’ ordered by the government, which will checks existing staff and officers against the national police database. No serious issues of concern have been identified out of over 1,800 records analysed so far.

John Dwyer, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, said:

“Improving public confidence in policing is a key priority in my Police and Crime Plan, but is it fair to say that national headlines regarding the police have run contrary to that aim.

“I am under no illusion that every organisation, police or otherwise, will have people in it who frankly should not be there. Having dug deeper into how we deal with that here in Cheshire, I am reassured that the Constabulary is serious about rooting out any signs of toxic culture.

“I want the public in Cheshire to be equally reassured that the people we entrust to protect our communities are held to the highest standards.”

Where a police officer is believed to have breached the standards of professional behaviour, misconduct proceedings are undertaken in accordance with The Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020. In the interests of transparency, a hearing is held in public and headed by an independent Legally Qualified Chair, appointed by the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner. However some cases can be fast-tracked, where Cheshire Constabulary determines that special conditions are met. This would mean a case is heard by the Chief Constable, who will determine the most appropriate outcome.

Chief Constable Mark Roberts said:

“The public rightly expect the highest standards from their police officers and we are committed to deliver them for the people of Cheshire - we already see that in our response to domestic abuse and investigations where we lead nationally.

“In terms of the Casey review, it related to the Metropolitan Police. However, we are not complacent and with the support of the Commissioner, our Independent Ethics Panel and our other community groups will continue to monitor our efforts to deliver the best possible policing for Cheshire.”

The Commissioner and Chief Constable established a new Independent Ethics Panel, made up of members of the public, to consider wider ethical issues within policing and provides oversight. The Panel Chair, Robert Mee, attended the scrutiny meeting and was reassured by the measures being taken by the Constabulary.

He said:

“The panel had been given full access to discuss training, procedural and operational matters with officers. While I had hoped the issues highlighted in the Casey review would not be present here in Cheshire, it is still important to openly discuss these issues so that the public can be aware of how the Constabulary is working to maintain their confidence.

“I was pleased to hear about the measures which the Constabulary is taking to ensure ethical working. As an Independent Ethics Panel we will continuously review and scrutinise the Constabulary as it seeks to uphold the standards we all expect of our police service.”

More information about the Commissioner’s scrutiny process can be found at: 

www.cheshire-pcc.gov.uk/what-the-commissioner-does/scrutiny/