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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