Greater Manchester Police apologise after 'explosive' report into treatment of women in custody

Greater Manchester Police has said sorry and accepted the recommendations of an 'explosive' report into the treatment of people arrested and taken into custody by the force.

Former victims’ commissioner for England and Wales, Dame Vera Baird KC, carried out the review after being asked by Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, following reports that three women had accused the force of unjustified strip searches after being arrested.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) previously denied any wrongdoing by its staff but, in a statement on Thursday, the force said they “fully acknowledge” there is “much more to do around the cultural practice of strip-search”.

Chief Constable Stephen Watson told ITV's Granada Reports that what Dame Vera Baird revealed was "indefensible":

Dame Vera’s report identified issues around GMP’s use of arrest, care for domestic and sexual abuse survivors, treatment of women and men in custody, use of strip-search and the handling of complaints.

The force said: “We have apologised and accepted the recommendations of an inquiry into the treatment of people in our custody that was commissioned following serious allegations in June 2023.

“While some improvements to address Dame Vera’s recommendations have already been made, we fully acknowledge there is much more to do around the cultural practice of strip-search, particularly for welfare purposes.

“We welcome an opportunity to work with national policing leads to accelerate our intention to cease strip-searches for welfare reasons, and to improve clarity and scrutiny around the grounds of a strip-search.

“It is also vital we continue to gain the trust and confidence of survivors and we are committed to ensuring all our officers have better trauma-informed training to ensure the most appropriate response is given to those who are vulnerable and need our care.”

The force added that they understand the “shock and concern” of members of the public after allegations against the force emerged last summer and said they are “fully committed to doing all we can so the public can have faith in our protection of women, girls and vulnerable people”.

Highlighting changes the force has already made, GMP said strip searches are “more transparently recorded, tightly governed and scrutinised”, that every female detainee is appointed a dedicated female welfare officer and a centralised standards and compliance team now examine between 150-200 examples of detention a month.

The force also said they are “now ‘rooting out’ and ‘booting out'” staff who are “unfit to wear the uniform”.

Chief Constable Stephen Watson said: “To those given a voice by this inquiry who have not received the care and consideration they are entitled to: I am sorry.

“The issues raised in Dame Vera’s report speaks to a period when our a custody system under pressure not performing to an acceptable standard.

“It evidences poor systems, structures, and incivility, insensitivity and compounded by a lack of routine leadership, scrutiny, and individual examples of low standards, poor behaviour, insensitivity, and a lack of care in the face of vulnerability.

“These issues are of the utmost importance and highlight the need to maintain the highest professional standards.

“These must reflect our duty, and moral obligation, to respect and uphold the dignity of all detainees but with a particular focus on women and girls.”

He added: “We accept the recommendations in this report. We commit to implementing them fully and faithfully with a view to making lasting improvements.”

• Dame Vera says the culture she uncovered showed those who made complaints were attacked even more by police

Dame Vera recommended that strip searching should be severely limited, properly regulated and fully recorded, and that custody officers should be reminded of their responsibilities for the accuracy and completeness of custody records.

In recalling her strip search, a woman given the name Maria to preserve her anonymity, told the inquiry: “The only reason they did what they did was to degrade me … If I was a man, I don’t think they would’ve done it. I was treated like a piece of meat.”

Dame Vera interviewed more than 15 people who had been arrested and detained by GMP, including three women featured in a Sky News investigation.

Custody records, detention logs, crime reports, witness statements and CCTV footage were among documents and data that were trawled through.

Dame Vera set out recommendations on domestic abuse, better custody provision especially for women, improved risk assessment and more humane and dignified treatment of all detainees, a lay presence in police custody and also on arrests.

Assistant Chief Constable Tom Harding, director of operational standards at the College of Policing, said the report makes for “difficult but necessary reading”.

“I understand that the contents of this report will cause further concern regarding the treatment of women and girls,” he said.

“I want to reassure all women and girls that your safety, trust and confidence remains a priority for the College of Policing, across all of our work.”

Former GMP detective Maggie Oliver described the inquiry as “another damning indictment of one of the country’s largest police forces”.

She said: “Dame Vera Baird’s explosive report reveals a shocking disregard for rights of those coming into contact with the criminal justice system.”

The report was commissioned by the Metro Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham.

He told ITV Granada Reports that "there should be an end to strip searches for so-called welfare reasons and there should be a presumption against strip-searching looking for concealed items."

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