Ticket Refund Department

NOT PROTECTIVELY MARKED

BY E-MAILHM Inspectorate of

Constabulary for Scotland

1st Floor

St Andrews House Regent Road

EDINBURGH

EH1 3DG

T:0131 244 5614

##September 2013

Dear Mr Roulston

HMICS Freedom of InformationRequest

Thank you for your request dated 1September 2013 under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) for the following information :

According to the Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland 11, 14 and 18 complaints were made against senior police officers in 2008/9, 2009/10 and 2010/11 respectively(Senior police officers are those holding ACPOS rank)

Could you please confirm the following:-

(1) Does the HMICS have any statutory role in such investigations?

(2) Does the HMICS have any advisory role in such investigations?

(Investigations includes the unknown number of complaints made in the 2012/13 period ending with the amalgamation into a single force)

(3) If there is a statutory/advisory role disclosed could you please supply the policy, procedure, SOP or other terms of reference that applies?

(I note that there may have been a system change during this period for lower rank complaints investigations which may have been replicated in these complaints)

(4) For each of the years mentioned (including 2013/13) could you please confirm for each complaint in the PCCS data whether the HMICS performed any statutory, advisory, investigative or other role (if so, please specify)?

(5) Is there any specific guidance on allowing peer group officers (who might be victims, witnesses or possibly suspects in the original complaint) from being actively involved in any procedure identified above in this request?

(Actively involved includes (but is not limited to) giving verbal opinions, formal written reports, attending meetings, case conferences, Gold groups etc)

Following a request for clarification you amended the wording of Q.5 on 5 September 2013 to :

(5)Is there any specific guidance about peer group officers (who might be victims, witnesses or possibly suspects in the original complaint) being actively involved in any procedure identified above in this request?

We have now completed our search for the information in your request, and the response is as follows :

1) No;

2)No;

3)N/A;

4)HMICS commissioned an independent review in relation to the application of policy, procedure, regulation and process by the central Scotland Joint Police Board;

5)Best practise would be that no peer group officerswho might be victims, witnesses or possibly suspects in the original complaint would be actively involved in any activity that may result.

If you are unhappy with this response to your request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review, by writing to Mr George Graham at the above postal / Email address. Your request should explain why you wish a review to be carried out, and should be made within 40 working days of receipt of this letter, and we will reply within 20 working days of receipt. If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to make a formal complaint to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

Yours sincerely

Insp. KEVIN STRUTHERS

Staff Officer