North Yorkshire PCC proposes new complaints system
North Yorkshire’s police and crime commissioner (PCC) has put forward proposals for her to take a more active role in the police complaints process.
Julia Mulligan made the case to her police and crime panel that she should oversee a new ‘complaints and recognition’ function for North Yorkshire Police.
This team would work with the force’s professional standards department and act as the sole point for all complaints made by the public.
Ms Mulligan believes the change is necessary as she claims the current complaints system tends to lay blame with individual officers and leaves people unable to complain about wider service failures.
The panel agreed that it would receive the business case for her proposals when ready.
Legislation was passed in April 2017 that enabled PCCs to take broader roles in the overall complaints process.
Ms Mulligan was instrumental in campaigning for the reform.
Under her proposals, North Yorkshire Police’s professional standards department would still deal with some types of complaints, but the new ‘customer service team’ would handle their receipt, initial assessment and allocation.
The unit would also resolve some complaints through service recovery, and an independent complaints adjudicator would be appointed to lead appeals or reviews.
The changes would not affect the formal complaints process or the work of the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
Similar complaints systems have already been introduced by forces including Cleveland Police and Northumbria Police.
If backed, the new approach would be funded by £100,000 already set aside from the PCC’s budget as well as planned efficiency savings.
Ms Mulligan hopes she will be able to adopt the scheme this autumn but its implementation could be delayed until next year.
The business case for the customer service team says: “In North Yorkshire, there is an opportunity to use these new powers to refocus on the importance of customer service, to get a better understanding of performance and to put the complaints and thanks North Yorkshire Police receive at the heart of a learning culture.
“Ultimately, a new complaints process will play a significant part in developing a continuous learning culture which is no longer risk-averse, which learns from mistakes, is open and honest, engages and addresses constructive criticism positively and always strives to deliver exemplary customer service.”