COMPLAINTS AGAINST CHESHIRE POLICE

A press release issued by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) today states that one in eight complaints in England and Wales involves an appeal to the IPCC, this is not the case in Cheshire.

“Monitoring complaints about the police is an important part of the Authority’s work” said Peter Nurse, Chairman of the Authority. “Last year in Cheshire there were 524 complainants, 3% fewer than last year and 80 appeals, one in fifteen, which is an indication that more people are satisfied with the way that their complaint is dealt with. Only 12% of the appeals were upheld by the IPCC. I am pleased to say that the Constabulary also received 338 letters of appreciation last year and this has to be seen in the context that we receive over a million calls per year and deal with hundreds of members of the public every day.”

11% of the complaints in Cheshire were withdrawn and 44% were resolved locally. 35% of the complainants were female and 2% were 17years old or younger. The largest group of complainants, 28% were aged between 40 and 49 years old.

86% of the complaints were made against police officers, 9% against police staff, and 2% against PCSOs. The remaining 3% were made against Specials or contract staff.

Peter Nurse added, “we encourage people to make a complaint if they feel that they have been treated unfairly or inappropriately as this is a way for the police service to understand what is wrong and to make improvements to the service people get.”

To read the IPCC press release click here