The Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020

2020 No. 4

POLICE, ENGLAND AND WALES

The Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020

Made 6thJanuary 2020

Laid before Parliament 10thJanuary 2020

Coming into force 1stFebruary 2020

CONTENTS

PART 1

Preliminary

1. Citation and commencement

4

2. Interpretation and delegation

4

3. Revocations and transitional provisions

8

4. Application

9

PART 2

General

5. Standards of Professional Behaviour

10

6. The harm test

10

7. Police friend

11

8. Legal and other representation

11

9. Provision of notices or documents

12

10. Outstanding or possible criminal proceedings

12

11. Suspension

12

12. Record of disciplinary proceedings

14

PART 3

Investigations

13. Application of this Part

14

14. Severity assessment

14

15. Appointment of investigator

15

16. Investigation

15

17. Written notices

15

18. Representations to the investigator

16

19. Timeliness of investigation

17

20. Interviews during investigation

17

21. Report of investigation

18

PART 4

Misconduct proceedings

22. General

19

23. Referral of case to misconduct proceedings

19

24. Presenting of case by the Director General

21

25. Joint misconduct proceedings

22

26. Delegation of functions

22

27. Withdrawal of misconduct proceedings

22

28. Persons conducting misconduct proceedings

23

29. Role of chair of misconduct hearing

24

30. Notice of referral to misconduct proceedings

25

31. Procedure on receipt of notice

26

32. Witnesses and documents to be supplied

27

33. Misconduct pre-hearing

28

34. Timing of misconduct meeting

30

35. Notice of misconduct proceedings and panel

31

36. Public notification of misconduct hearings

31

37. Attendance of officer concerned at misconduct proceedings

32

38. Participation of the Director General and investigator at misconduct proceedings

33

39. Reporting restrictions, participation and exclusions from proceedings

33

40. Attendance of complainant, interested persons and others at misconduct proceedings

34

41. Procedure at misconduct proceedings

35

42. Outcome of misconduct proceedings

36

43. Notification of outcome

38

44. Record of misconduct proceedings

40

45. Appeal from misconduct meeting: officers other than senior officers

40

46. Appeal meeting

41

47. Finding of the appeal

42

PART 5

Accelerated Misconduct Hearings

48. General

43

49. Referral of case to accelerated misconduct hearing

43

50. Remission of case

44

51. Notice of referral to accelerated misconduct hearing

44

52. Notice of accelerated misconduct hearing

45

53. Public notification of accelerated misconduct hearing

45

54. Procedure on receipt of notice

46

55. Persons conducting accelerated misconduct hearing

46

56. Documents to be supplied

46

57. Attendance of officer concerned at accelerated misconduct hearing

47

58. Participation of Director General and investigator at accelerated misconduct hearing

47

59. Reporting restrictions and participation at accelerated misconduct hearing

48

60. Notice to complainant and interested persons of accelerated misconduct hearing

48

61. Procedure at accelerated misconduct hearing

49

62. Outcome of accelerated misconduct hearing

50

63. Notification of outcome

52

64. Record of accelerated misconduct hearing

53

PART 6

Reflective practice review process

65. Interpretation and application

53

66. General

53

67. Referral to reflective practice review process

54

68. Fact-finding stage

54

69. Discussion stage

54

70. Reflective review development report

55

71. Failure to engage with the reflective practice review process

55

Part 7 Amendment of the Special Constables Regulations 1965 and the Police Barred List and Police Advisory List Regulations

2017

72. Amendment of the Special Constables Regulations 1965

55

73. Amendment of the Police Barred List and Police Advisory List Regulations 2017

55

SCHEDULE 1 —Modifications to these Regulations in their application to former officers

56

SCHEDULE 2 —Standards of professional behaviour

70

The Secretary of State makes the following Regulations, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 50(1), (2)(e) and (f), (2A), (3), (3A) to (3G), (4) and (7), 51(1), (2)(b), (2)(ba) and (c), (2A) to (2H), (3A) and (4), 84(1) to (6), 88A(2)(b) and 88G(1)(b) of the Police Act 1996(1), section 36(1(a) and (b) of, and paragraph 29 of Schedule 3 to, the Police Reform Act 2002(2) and section 29(7) of the Policing and Crime Act 2017(3).

In accordance with section 63(3)(a) of the Police Act 1996(4), the Secretary of State has supplied a draft of these Regulations to the Police Advisory Board for England and Wales and has taken into consideration the representations made by that Board before making these Regulations.

PART 1

Preliminary

Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 and come into force on 1st February 2020.

Interpretation and delegation

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1996 Act” means the Police Act 1996;

the 2002 Act” means the Police Reform Act 2002;

“the Complaints and Misconduct Regulations” means the Police (Complaints and Misconduct Regulations) 2020(5);

“the Performance Regulations” means the Police (Performance) Regulations 2020(6);

“the Police Regulations” means the Police Regulations 2003(7);

“accelerated misconduct hearing” means a hearing to which the officer concerned is referred under regulation 49 after the case has been certified as one where the special conditions are satisfied;

“acting chief officer” means—

(a) a person exercising or performing functions of a chief constable in accordance with section 41 of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011(8) (power of deputy to exercise functions of chief constable);

(b) a person exercising powers or duties of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis in accordance with section 44 (functions of Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis) or 45(4) (Assistant Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis) of that Act, or

(c) a person exercising duties of the Commissioner of Police for the City of London in accordance with section 25 of the City of London Police Act 1839(9);

“allegation” means an allegation relating to a complaint, conduct matter or practice requiring improvement;

“appeal meeting” means a meeting held in accordance with regulation 46;

“appropriate authority” means, subject to regulation 26(3)—

(a) where the officer concerned is the chief officer or acting chief officer of any police force, the local policing body(10) for the force's area;

(b) in any other case, the chief officer of police of the police force concerned;

“complainant” has the meaning given to it by section 29(2) of the 2002 Act (interpretation of Part 2)(11);

“complaint” has the meaning given to it by section 12 of the 2002 Act (complaints, matters and persons to which Part 2 applies)(12);

“conduct” includes acts, omissions, statements and decisions (whether actual, alleged or inferred);

“conduct matter” has the meaning given to it by section 12 of the 2002 Act (complaints, matters and persons to which Part 2 applies)(13);

“criminal proceedings” means—

(a) any prospective criminal proceedings, or

(b) all criminal proceedings brought which have not been brought to a conclusion (apart from the bringing and determination of any appeal other than an appeal against conviction to the Crown Court);

“Director General” means the Director General of the Independent Office for Police Conduct, established under section 9 of the 2002 Act (the Independent Office for Police Conduct)(14);

“disciplinary action” means, in order of seriousness starting with the least serious action—

(a) a written warning;

(b) a final written warning;

(c) reduction in rank, or

(d) dismissal without notice;

“disciplinary proceedings” means—

(a) misconduct proceedings under Part 4 of these Regulations;

(b) an accelerated misconduct hearing under Part 5 of these Regulations, or

(c) an appeal from misconduct proceedings or from an accelerated misconduct hearing under the Police Appeals Tribunals Rules 2020(15),

but, for the purposes of the following provisions, “disciplinary proceedings” only includes misconduct proceedings mentioned in paragraph (a) and a hearing mentioned in paragraph (b) of this definition—

(i) paragraph (a) of the definition of “disciplinary proceedings” in section 87(5) of the 1996 Act (guidance concerning disciplinary proceedings etc.)(16);

(ii) paragraph (a) of the definition of “disciplinary proceedings” in section 29(1) of the 2002 Act (interpretation of Part 2)(17);

(iii) section 36(2) of the 2002 Act (conduct of disciplinary proceedings)(18);

“document” means anything in which information of any description is recorded;

“gross misconduct” means a breach of the Standards of Professional Behaviour that is so serious as to justify dismissal;

“harm test” has the meaning given to it in regulation 6;

“HMCIC” means Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary appointed under section 54(1) of the 1996 Act (appointment and functions of inspectors of constabulary);

“human resources professional” means a police officer or police staff member who has specific responsibility for personnel matters relating to members of a police force;

“informant” means a person who provides information to an investigation on the basis that the person's identity is not disclosed during the course of the disciplinary proceedings;

“interested party” means a person whose appointment could reasonably give rise to a concern as to whether the person could act impartially under these Regulations;

“interested person” means a person who has an interest in being kept properly informed about the handling of a complaint or conduct matter in accordance with section 21 of the 2002 Act (duty to provide information for other persons)(19);

“investigator” means a person—

(a) appointed under regulation 15, or

(b) appointed or designated under paragraph 16, 18 or 19 of Schedule 3 to the 2002 Act (investigations)(20), as the case may be;

“line manager” means the police officer or the police staff member who has immediate supervisory responsibility...

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