South Yorkshire Police Federation reveals changes to how officers who make 'genuine mistakes' are dealt with

The new misconduct legislation comes into force in February and aims to ‘shake up’ the current system.

The Home Office says the procedure will be more proportionate and focus on allowing officers to ‘learn from their mistakes’, while addressing concerns about the length of time cases can take.

It is an attempt to move from a blame to a more learning culture.

South Yorkshire Police Federation Chairman Steve Kent said: “It’s about lessons learned. Officers who are corrupt deserve everything that comes to them, and I think 99.9% of police officers would agree with that. But officers who make a genuine mistake need to be supported and that needs to be seen.

“I actually think in South Yorkshire we tend to get that right in our professional standards and the attitude of the senior command team.

“So it’s positive news. It’s going to take a while to bed in, and it is going to take a little bit of learning for people to get our heads around what the new Regulations are going to be.

“But they are going to make a big difference and also cut out bureaucracy, and within policing cut down on the timescales which we know are such a big thing.”

Line Managers will be given more opportunities to improve individuals’ learning and behaviour in lower-level conduct matters, while plans are in place to improve the effectiveness of the IOPC.

What won’t change in the new regulations is the need for officers to talk about any issues or mistakes they may have made as quickly as possible after the incident.

Steve said: “If officers make a mistake, they need to let their supervisors know and let their managers know as soon as possible. That doesn’t change.

“What it does change is that the new regulations will protect the common sense ways we look at things.

“So, if officers do make a mistake, as long as they don’t hide it, they don’t try and cover it up, they should expect, quite rightly, to be supported by the force and their managers. Honesty is key.”