Federation to have role in IOPC training

19 May 2021

A plan for the Police Federation to have a role in the training of new police watchdog investigators will speed up misconduct proceedings and make them fairer for officers under investigation.

That is the view of Humberside Police Federation secretary Rob Grunner.

He was speaking after the announcement of ‘Meet the Fed’ sessions for Independent Office for Police Conduct recruits (IOPC).

The IOPC recruits will learn about the Police Federation’s conduct and performance liaison officers (CAPLOs) who support members from day one of a complaint and what they will require from them at each stage of an investigation. They will also receive Post-Incident Procedures Level 1 and 2 training accredited by the College of Policing.

It's hoped the sessions will lead to smoother relations between officers, their Federation reps and IOPC investigators.

Rob said: “Involving the Federation in the training of new investigators is a welcome move. We hope it will help improve and build relations between the Federation and the IOPC and make the process fairer for our members.

“It will also speed up IOPC investigations. We’ve seen them go on for years, which is unfair on the officers involved and can impact their health and wellbeing. It’s also costly to the tax payer and undermines public confidence in the system when investigations drag on.

“But there’s still work to do, and we’ll continue to campaign through our Time Limits campaign to ensure that all IOPC investigations limited to 12 months.”

Phill Matthews, the national Federation’s conduct and performance chair, will take part in the sessions.

He said: “This is an important and positive first step towards improving the relationship between IOPC investigators and Fed reps which should in turn make the disciplinary system fairer for everyone.

“By breaking down barriers, we can open discussions with its investigators on how our reps operate to not just support officers but also assist their investigations from day one. We want to help them make the process as smooth as possible.”

Phill added: “IOPC investigators now having access to PIP training is very welcome news and is something the Federation has been pressing hard for. All detectives are trained to this standard, so it only seems right that IOPC investigators are also trained to this level or higher.

“Ultimately, all we want is fair investigators with the best possible training, gathering the evidence our members need to either clear themselves, or remove the minority of corrupt individuals from the service, in a timely manner.”