Concerns over 'unprofessional and inappropriate culture' within Humberside Police leadership

Allegations have been made of an "unprofessional and inappropriate culture" within the Humberside Police leadership team and "inappropriate practices" in the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC).

A letter has been written by a number of MPs expressing "a lack of confidence in the conduct and leadership" of the executive team.

The news comes on the same day inspectors said Humberside Police must improve the way it investigates crime after raising concerns about a "lack of stability" in its leadership.

The force currently has no permanent chief constable after the former incumbent, Paul Anderson, suddenly retired on 25 June, less than a year after taking up the role.

The following day, the Independent Office for Police Conduct confirmed he was being investigated over alleged misconduct in relation to his behaviour towards colleagues.

The Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan Evison then revealed the OPCC had received "details of potential misconduct" relating to Mr Anderson on 12 June, and had referred the matter to the IOPC on 24 June.

The PCC is responsible for holding the Chief Constable to account over the force's performance.

Mr Evison later said he accepted his chief constable's retirement despite the IOPC investigation because it was cheaper than suspending him.

The force received no applications when it initially advertised the vacancy and said it would invite applications again this month.

In the letter, the MPs call for Mr Evison to not be involved in the interviews for the next Chief Constable.

The joint letter, written by Hull West and Haltemprice MP Emma Hardy, Hull East MP Karl Turner, Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes MP Melanie Onn and Scunthorpe MP Sir Nicholas Dakin, has been sent to Susan Whittaker, Chair of the Humberside Police and Crime Panel.

The letter states: "A lack of confidence in the conduct and leadership of the current force executive team and the OPCC has also been raised with us by officers and staff of all levels, along with questions relating to the public timeline of events leading to the resignation of Paul Anderson.

"A recruitment process to appoint a new Chief Constable has failed to attract a suitable candidate. This is a matter of concern, as the current arrangement does not give us confidence that these serious issues will be addressed.

"In the event of the next round of a selection process, we would request that the interview process is done independently of the Police and Crime Commissioner, or with independent monitoring and oversight."

Meanwhile, the Humberside Police Federation said it has "significant concerns" about the force's executive leadership team, claiming they were "openly dismissive of all concerns raised about the force".

The federation said: "We have been inundated with phone calls from our members expressing their upset and disappointment about the executive leadership team’s attitude to the report, with some members being brought to tears.

"As a Federation, we feel that the excellent hard work that is being undertaken by our members across Humberside is being undermined by the inability of the executive leadership team to accept or learn from constructive criticism and feedback.

"This cannot continue."

In a statement, the PCC said he believes the letter was "politically motivated" as he was voted in as a Conservative, and it was written by Labour MPs.

He added: "I have not been approached directly by any MPs for them to express concerns around the leadership or performance of the force.

"The letter from Labour MPs demonstrates a general lack of understanding of the appointment process for a Chief Constable. The process is very much transparent and subject to independent scrutiny, not only by my Monitoring Officer, but by the Independent Members of the panel that provide a full report to the Police and Crime Panel.

"The letter suggests that there are Police Officers who have concerns about the leadership of Humberside Police who may be engaging with politicians to share these concerns. I want to remind people of the processes in place for raising concerns or allegations of misconduct.

"I want Humberside Police to be a high performing organisation with a positive and engaged workforce focussed on delivery to the public. I will always work hard to ensure that the force is the best it can be and hold the Chief Constable accountable to the public for the services delivered."

Meanwhile, Chief Constable Judi Heaton said: "I welcome the report and the outstanding and good gradings, that are the most awarded to any force in the UK, and personally want to reiterate this is a true credit to all officers, staff and volunteers who have contributed and played their part in this achievement; it truly is a team effort.

"We have been and continue to go through a challenging period, nevertheless, we do have exceptionally strong leadership at all levels and my role is to ensure I provide a steadiness and assurance across the force and to our stakeholders and partners, who I have been and will be personally updating over the next few days.

"Everyone is valued and their opinions matter, and I welcomed all feedback on the latest inspection report from officers and staff yesterday, and I retain this position and encourage anyone who feels anxious or affected to know they will be supported and treated with the utmost sensitivity.

"We will never be complacent and we are determined we will succeed in continuing to provide our communities with the exceptional level of service they deserve from their police force."

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