Police forces need to do more to ensure they are able to detect
and root-out ‘abuse of position for a sexual purpose’ by
officers and staff, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary
and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has said in a report
published today (Friday, September 27).
HMICFRS inspected how forces are tackling this crime in 2015,
2016 and 2017. Over this period, inspectors found that most
forces have been slow to take the steps necessary to root out
this type of corruption. As part of its ongoing annual
assessments of police forces in England and Wales, HMICFRS
committed to following up how forces had progressed since
2017.
HMICFRS has seen some encouraging progress and an improved
understanding of the problem across the whole of the police
workforce. Inspectors have also seen examples of forces
being proactive and creative in looking for signs of
corruption. They carry out this work using relatively modest
resources. However, while HMICFRS found excellent work in some
forces, others are lagging far behind.
• Vetting is the first line of defence for forces. But HMICFRS
estimated that more than 10 percent of the police workforce
did not have up to date vetting.
• Forces need dedicated resources to proactively look for warning
signs and develop intelligence. But two-thirds of forces had
insufficient capacity in their counter-corruption units
• Forces need to be able to proactively detect misuse of their
ICT systems and the information they hold. But two-thirds of
forces don’t yet have full ICT monitoring on their systems.
These forces haven’t invested the necessary resources and they
aren’t proactive enough in looking for corruption. The
report published today makes a number of recommendations for
forces to help them improve tackling this form of corruption
and abuse.
HM Inspector of Constabulary said:
“It is important to recognise that this sort of abuse of power is
thankfully incredibly rare, and the vast majority of
officers and staff are dedicated public servants who would
never contemplate this inexcusable behaviour.
“Nonetheless, even one instance of abuse of position for a sexual
purpose is one too many. It is an appalling betrayal of
often vulnerable people, and can be devastating to those
who fall prey to it. Although the numbers of people involved
are small, forces must do all they can to prevent, detect
and deal with this serious form of corruption.
“We have been urging the police to act on this issue for some
years now. Many forces have listened and are already making
changes. But I’ve been deeply disappointed to find
that others have, after all this time, still not put some
basic measures in place. Forces should reflect on the
findings of this report and take action: to maintain the
legitimacy of the police and, most importantly, to protect the
public from predators who have no place in policing.”
The report ‘Shining a light on betrayal: abuse of position for a
sexual purpose’ is published as part of HMICFRS’s ongoing
annual assessment of police effectiveness, efficiency and
legitimacy (PEEL).
Also published today is the second group of Integrated PEEL
Assessments (IPA). The first group of IPA reports published
in May 2019 showed a system under pressure. In this second group
of inspections, it increasingly shows how this pressure is
affecting the dedicated people who work to keep the public safe.
A workforce under pressure cannot give the public the best level
of service.
HM Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr said:
“Overall, most forces are performing well. They are keeping
people safe and reducing crime, using their resources
efficiently, and treating their workforces and the communities
they serve fairly and with respect. But following this
second group of inspections we found that there are more
forces requiring improvement in more areas. And we have issued
our first inadequate grades in our 2018/19 PEEL inspections.
We do not want to see the police service, which is currently
meeting the needs of most people in England and Wales,
find itself unable to cope with demand.
“Our inspections took place before recent announcements of the
recruitment of additional officers, but this makes our
findings more relevant. It is welcome news that the
Government plans to increase the number of police officers.
But that will not, on its own, solve the pressures facing
policing. Our report shows areas that need addressing to make
sure that the public feels the benefits, as well as ensuring
police officers and staff are supported and protected when
performing their duties.”
Notes
1. Abuse of position for a sexual purpose is defined as:
‘any behaviour by a police officer or police staff member,
whether on or off duty, that takes advantage of their
position as a member of the police service to misuse their
position, authority or powers in order to pursue a sexual or
improper emotional relationship with any member of the
public’
2. PEEL is an annual assessment of police forces in England and
Wales. Forces are assessed on their effectiveness,
efficiency and legitimacy. They are judged as outstanding, good,
requires improvement or inadequate on these categories (or
pillars) based on inspection findings, analysis and Her
Majesty’s Inspectors’ (HMIs) professional judgment across the
year.
