Police anti-corruption and abuse reporting service launched

Reports can be made online or via a dedicated free phone line about serving police officers, staff and volunteers who are suspected of being corrupt or committing serious abuse.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) says the new service will “bolster forces’ capability to take action against those who are not fit to serve”, a commitment made by all police chiefs and police and crime commissioners (PCCs) to strengthen police standards and culture.

The launch follows a year of joint working between forces, PCCs and Crimestoppers to ensure that the service is available to all communities across the UK.

The service has been successfully used by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), where 2,878 online reports and calls have been received between November 2022 and February 2024.

It follows the force’s recent screening of the entire police workforce to ensure high standards of integrity are being upheld.

The Police Anti-Corruption and Abuse Reporting Service covers reports relating to officers, staff and volunteers who:

• Provide information or influence in return for money or favours;
• Use their policing position for personal advantage – whether financial or otherwise;
• Cross professional boundaries or abuse their position for sexual purposes;
• Abuse or control their partner, or those they have a relationship with; and
• Engage in racist, homophobic, misogynistic or disablist conduct, on or off duty, in person or online.

Crimestoppers says it will take calls from the public about individuals employed by any police force in the UK, regardless of whether “the information relates to them while they are on or off duty, online or in person”.

When people contact the service, they can choose to remain 100 per cent anonymous, or can opt to leave their details if they are willing for the force investigation team to contact them directly.

Information received by Crimestoppers will be passed to the relevant force’s specialist unit, such as Professional Standards or Anti-Corruption, for assessment.

“It may be passed to specialist detectives to begin an investigation, take steps to safeguard someone at risk or in danger, or record the information to inform future investigations,” says the NPCC.

The service sits alongside each force’s existing complaints procedure and has been set up solely to take reports of serious corruption and abuse committed by serving police officers and staff made by the public.

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, chair of the NPCC, said: “This reporting service will enable us to take action by giving the public a new, anonymous and confidential route to report corruption, criminality, or abusive behaviour within policing.

“We do not underestimate the impact recent events have had on trust and confidence in policing, including the appalling findings of the Angiolini report.

“We have made progress in strengthening procedures around misconduct and vetting, and forces are taking a proactive approach to finding and rooting out wrongdoing. However, we know there is always more to do to ensure that we meet the high standards rightly expected and deserved by the public.

“The vast majority of police officers and staff act professionally and with integrity in the fulfilment of their duties to protect the public. We must take tough action to purge policing of those responsible for wrongdoing, for now and for the future.

“This year, we checked our entire work force for unknown allegations or concerns and will begin long-term screening to ensure that there is no place for corrupt or abusive officers and staff to hide in our forces.”

Donna Jones, chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said: “We have all been horrified by terrible instances of criminality such as those set out in shocking detail in Lady Elish Angiolini’s recent report, along with other appalling behaviours that have come to light in policing.

“This service provides an opportunity for the public to report their concerns about individuals, and for policing to root out more of those not fit to serve and who impugn the characters of the overwhelming majority of officers committed to protecting us.

“PCCs have a legal duty to ensure an effective police service in their police force area; this includes ensuring the highest levels of integrity are maintained.

“In overseeing complaints procedures PCCs working with their forces, will provide a voice to those affected by police corruption and abuse and will hold chief constables to account for dealing efficiently and effectively with these complaints and resulting investigations, and quickly and decisively in forcing out those who are found to fall below the required standards.”

Mark Hallas, chief executive of Crimestoppers, said “we all share the same aim of wanting to see dangerous and abusive police officers and staff rooted out”.

He added: The public deserves a safe and transparent policing environment that they can trust.

“Crucially, the launch of this service gives people an option to make that initial report via our independent charity and not directly to the police. Those with serious allegations who have previously stayed silent will have greater confidence to come forward.”

Policing Minister Chris Philp said: “Public confidence in our police has been severely damaged. There can be no stone left unturned in our efforts to clean up the workforce and culture, and rebuild trust.

“This anonymous helpline will give people the confidence to challenge the behaviour of officers who fall below the high standards the public deserve.

“This is alongside a broad range of continuous action being taken to root out officers unfit to serve and tighten vetting processes to ensure the right people are in policing.”

The national launch of the Police Anti-Corruption and Abuse Reporting Service follows a successful roll-out at the MPS in November 2022. The reporting service has since received 1988 calls and 890 online reports, with 867 pieces of intelligence passed onto the force. This resulted in 728 MPS-led investigations, and the remaining 139 reports were passed to other forces.

Detective Chief Superintendent Andy Day, from the MPS’s Anti-Corruption and Abuse Command, said: “We took the exceptional step of opening the first public reporting service of this type 18 months ago with Crimestoppers to bolster our ongoing efforts to root out anyone in the Met abusing their position and power, and convey to the public our determination to use every tool possible to help regain their trust and confidence.

“The hundreds of reports into Crimestoppers show that the service has had a really significant impact, leading to vital intelligence being contributed to dozens of ongoing enquiries here and outside the Met, as well as causing us to launch new investigations.

“Its success has been a very positive step for our communities in London, and we are pleased that all the other forces have decided to adopt it and we will see a national roll out.

“It’s vital that the public know there are clear systems in place where appalling behaviours will be challenged and addressed robustly and that those within policing know they can trust their colleagues.”

Ronald Winch, Associate Professor in Policing and Course Director MSc Policing and Intelligence Analysis at Birmingham City University (BCU), said: “Such a system, properly managed and with outcomes widely shared, can increase public trust and confidence in the methods by which police misconduct is reported, in addition to the existing measures.

“Like all reporting mechanisms, there is potential for misuse and for malicious or false allegations to be made.

“If the system is to have the confidence of the public and the police, then transparency is essential around how reports are investigated, including governance and accountability measures.

“Any system must not serve to disincentivise those who have been affected by police misconduct.”

Sharda Murria, BCU Senior Lecturer in Policing, added: “This initiative not only provides a crucial avenue for the public – and even fellow officers – to voice their concerns without directly approaching the police, but also signifies a positive step towards rebuilding public trust.”

“It’s essential that the bravery of those reporting corruption is met with robust methods to manage reports fairly, conduct thorough investigations, and take swift action, particularly as complaints will ultimately be investigated by police forces.

“Police officers operate under significant scrutiny. While most officers may welcome additional oversight in the public interest, concerns relating to false allegations will need to be managed through internal transparency and provisions to prevent biases or deliberate misreporting, particularly for officers from minoritised communities.”