West Yorks Police vow to improve complaints handling

Three police forces, including West Yorkshire Police, have been criticised by the police watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission, for "poor" handling of discrimination complaints.

Here is the response from West Yorkshire Police's Deputy Chief Constable Dee Collins:

“What matters most to us, is that people who complain have the confidence to contact us, knowing we will deal with matters fairly and professionally.

“While we accept there are always areas for improvement and we really welcome the independent scrutiny of bodies like the IPCC, our current complaints system is undergoing significant improvement incorporating previous observations from the Crawford report as well as other feedback.

“We are very disappointed with the suggestion that we are “failing at every stage”, however we recognise there are some improvements to be made and we are well advanced with that work, significant changes having taken place since the time this data was collected.

“Furthermore, we refute the report’s assertion that we “do not have a good understanding of the communities (we) serve.” It is not our experience, or what we hear from the communities where our Neighbourhood Policing Teams are firmly embedded and have an excellent relationship.

“West Yorkshire Police officers and staff have contact with thousands of people every day, often in distressing and difficult situations.

"The vast majority of those instances not only pass without complaint, but often result in positive comments and letters praising our people. Most of our employees joined to serve the public and are totally committed to upholding the high standards we expect to make communities safe and feel safer.

“However, we understand there will be exceptions and want to assure individuals and communities that any allegation will be treated seriously and thoroughly investigated.

"Changes last year led to our Professional Standards Department being strengthened and staffed by highly experienced investigators, together with the establishment of a Complaints and Strategy Unit, to address a number of the issues that have been raised within the IPCC report.

“We have to have the best systems possible, where both the complainant and the officer or staff member have the opportunity to explore and understand what has happened, and to deal with the matter appropriately.”