3 February Monitoring of Complaints against the Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner September 2014 to January 2015

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1 3 February 2015 Monitoring of Complaints against the Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner September 2014 to January Purpose of the Report The purpose of this report is to update Panel Members on how complaints against the Police and Crime Commissioner falling within Panel s remit are being handled. 2. Recommendations The Panel is recommended to note the progress in relation to the handling of complaints during the period September 2014 to January Background 3.1 The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act placed a statutory obligation on the Police and Crime Panel to deal with complaints about the Police and Crime Commissioner and any appointed Deputy. The Act also provided for the publication of regulations in relation to this responsibility ( The Elected Local Policing Bodies (Complaints and Misconduct) Regulations 2012 ). 3.2 In essence, the Regulations give the Panel three specific key functions in relation to such complaints:- Initial handling of complaints and conduct matters; Informal resolution of relevant complaints within the Panel s remit; and, The provision and recording of information.

2 3.3 In accordance with the legislation, the Panel originally delegated responsibility for initial handling of complaints to the Chief Executive of the Commissioner s Office in December In late March 2013, the Commissioner s Interim Chief Executive notified the Panel that this delegation was no longer accepted. Consequently, the Panel was obliged in April 2013 to agree a new Complaint Handling Procedure, which now includes delegation to the Host Authority s Monitoring Officer to handle initial complaints and, where appropriate, to attempt to resolve such complaints informally. 3.4 Complaints submitted since the Panel s 30 April 2013 meeting have therefore been dealt with by Host Authority s officers in accordance with the agreed Complaint Handling Procedure. 3.5 The Panel s work programme provides for updates to be provided twice yearly. The Panel previously received an update on complaints handling in September Complaints Handling September 2014 to January One new complaint (3-2014) has been handled by the Host Authority during the period between September and January. This is in addition to two outstanding complaints ( and ) that were highlighted in the last monitoring report. (A brief summary of progress on each is attached at Appendix A). 4.2 Two previous complainants ( and ) have continued to enter into correspondence in relation to complaints they feel they have against the Commissioner. In each instance, it has been judged that the information provided has not pointed to grounds for a valid complaint against the Commissioner. 4.3 In both cases, it is likely that the procedure for dealing with habitual or vexatious complainants will need to be invoked. This procedure is incorporated in the Panel s agreed complaints handling procedure. Both complainants have been provided with prior notice of this possible outcome. In accordance with the procedure, the decision to invoke will be made by the Monitoring Officer in consultation with the Chair of the Panel. 5. Conclusion The Panel has statutory responsibilities regarding the handling of complaints alleging misconduct against the Commissioner. Since its last update on complaints matters, the Monitoring Officer has been involved in handling a number of complaints. Three complaints remain outstanding. Two previous complainants have continued to pursue complaints against the Commissioner. In each instance, their ongoing complaints have not been considered to be valid and have therefore not been recorded as fresh complaints.

3 YVONNE LEDGERTON Assistant Executive Director (Governance) and Monitoring Officer Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council (Host Authority) Contact Officer David Moran, Scrutiny and Partnerships Manager, Knowsley Borough Council (0151) Appendices:- A. Complaints against the Commissioner September 2014 to January 2015

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5 Appendix A Outstanding Recorded Complaints Complaints against the Commissioner September January 2015 REF NO. 3/2013 COMPLAINT RECEIVED 10 April/ 20 May 2013 (Original submission did not make clear the grounds for complaint and thus allow a decision to be made on whether to record or not. Later submission provided clarity) RECORDED Yes DATE 24 May 2013 REFERRAL Referral for informal resolution under paragraphs 13.6 and 17 of the Merseyside Police and Crime Panel s complaints handling procedure. CURRENT STATUS Informal resolution proposals agreed with Commissioner Response awaited from complainant as to whether proposals are acceptable.. REF NO. 5/2013 COMPLAINT RECEIVED 23 September 2013 RECORDED Yes DATE 9 October 2013 REFERRAL Referral for informal resolution under paragraphs 13.6 and 17 of the Merseyside Police and Crime Panel s complaints handling procedure. CURRENT STATUS Comments on substance of complaint requested from Commissioner s Office. This will allow Monitoring Officer to frame informal resolution proposals. The Commissioner s Office have been liaising with the Force in relation to the detail behind the complaint. A formal response remains awaited from the Commissioner s Office

6 Appendix A Complaint being processed REF NO. 3/2014 COMPLAINT RECEIVED 2 October 2014 RECORDED CURRENT STATUS To be decided Initial correspondence with the complainant requested him to provide specific information to demonstrate that his complaint involved the personal behaviour/ conduct of the commissioner. Subsequent correspondence has been received from the complainant during w/b 19 January. The information contained in this correspondence will now be assessed by the Monitoring Officer and a judgement made on whether the complaint should be recorded or deemed not valid.