Results published in policing’s largest integrity screening project

• 307, 452 officers, staff and volunteers checked against the Police National Database (PND)
• First time any workforce has undergone integrity screening on this scale
• Working towards longer term Continuous Integrity Screening solution

Today (23 January 2024) sees the publication of the largest integrity screening project undertaken in policing, with over 307,000 officers, staff and volunteers checked against the Police National Database (PND).

In January 2023, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) contacted all police forces and asked them to prepare their HR data so all officers, staff and volunteers could be checked against the PND.

The Police National Database (PND) is a data store of operational policing information and intelligence provided by individual forces. It contains copies of locally held police records covering intelligence, crime, custody, child protection and domestic abuse investigations.

Chief Constable Serena Kennedy, National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for Prevention and Senior Responsible Officer for the historical data wash process said:

“The results from this process have shown that the large majority of our officers, staff and volunteers are professional, dedicated individuals who act with integrity and work hard to keep their communities safe.

“While the historical data wash has resulted in some cases which require criminal or disciplinary investigation, this low number, together with the fact these people have now been identified and appropriate action taken, should provide reassurance that we are committed to the highest standards of integrity and will continue to deal robustly with those who fall below these standards.

“In addition to the cases referred to an appropriate authority, we know significant action has been taken by local forces to address all information identified in the historical data wash through stringent processes and procedures.

“We also identified a number of people who required welfare support from their force and it is positive that we can now give them the care they require. These could be individuals who have been a victim or witness to a crime but have not received specialist support which they need and rightly deserve.

“We are working with the Home Office to establish a sustainable solution to ensure those working in policing are checked against the PND on an ongoing basis and highlighted at the earliest opportunity.”

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, National Police Chiefs’ Council Chair said:

“The cross checking of records on such a large scale was a significant task which shows our commitment right across policing to identify those who do not meet the high standards expected.

“Police forces responded with urgency, enabling us to carry out the largest integrity screening project that policing has ever seen.  Despite the comparatively low numbers of returns the exercise was important in ensuring we have a strong foundation on which to build an automated process.  We look forward to working with our colleagues across Government and policing to make this a reality.  I hope that it gives further reassurance to communities, and to colleagues in policing, that the overwhelming majority of the workforce can be trusted, and that if you are involved in wrongdoing, there is no place to hide.”

Policing Minister, Chris Philp said:

“Public confidence in police has been damaged by a number of truly shocking cases, and we must take action to root out any officer not fit to serve.

“While we know that the vast majority of officers and police staff - over 99% - are brave, hard-working and dedicated to protecting the public, new serious concerns have been raised in a small number of cases as a result of this work. The police are now carefully scrutinising these cases, and we will continue to work with the police to remove those who fall short of the standards we expect.

“That is why we are making it easier for the police to sack rogue officers and we will be providing half a million pounds so forces can roll out automated and continuous vetting.

“We will stop at nothing to restore trust in policing and keep people safe.”

Building on the data wash work, the NPCC is now working with the Home Office to consider a longer term integrity solution for policing which will provide forces with a solution which alerts them to any new information in a timely manner.  

Key results from the historical data wash (full tables here)

• 307, 452 officers, staff and volunteers checked against Police National Database
  • o 461 of those were referred to an appropriate authority and of these:
    • 9 triggered further criminal investigation
    • 88 triggered disciplinary investigation
    • 139 triggered vetting clearance
    • 128 triggered management intervention
    • 97 required no further action

Individuals identified in above step either dealt with through stringent professional standards processes to manage and/or mitigate risk or referred to an appropriate authority[1]. Those referred to an appropriate authority dealt with in one of following ways:

1. Criminal investigation
2. Disciplinary investigation (misconduct)
3. Management intervention (dealt with by supervision)
4. Vetting clearance (re-vetting)
5. No further action

   Notes to editors

   The Police National Database (PND) is a data store of operational policing information and intelligence provided by individual forces. It contains copies of locally held police records covering intelligence, crime, custody, child protection and domestic abuse investigations.

   Process behind the historical data wash

1. Forces prepared HR data on officers and staff so that it could be processed through PND.

• 307, 452 records submitted.
• Completed by end Feb 2023

2. Force data processed through PND in stages

• Not all force data could go through the PND at the same time due to capacity in the system. It was sequenced over a number of weeks.

3. Identify staff where checks indicate potential concerns and investigate

• By September 2023 police forces identified all cases for further investigation and began those investigations. The time taken to reach this stage depended on scale and number of staff completing checks. Investigations were prioritised based on the threat and risk identified 

• [1] The Appropriate Authority is the term for the person responsible for considering complaints made about the force and/or individuals within. AA’s are the rank of at least the Chief Inspector or Police Staff equivalent with accredited training. They work within the Authorised Professional Practice (APP) and are usually based within a Professional Standards team.