Conclusions and recommendations
1. The
issuing of Police Information Notices is an operational matter
left up to each force, which has resulted in examples of inconsistent
use between forces, as well as within forces themselves. There
is no sharing of information between police forces on PINs, which
strongly undermines Chief Constables' ability to assess their
forces' usage. Each force should publish the number of PINs issued
on their websites on a monthly basis. The Home Office should collate
and publish annual data about the number of PINs issued by each
force, including the number of cases in which repeat victimisation
was reported following the issuing of a PIN, and the number of
prosecutions that followed. This will enable Chief Constables
to see how their force compares to other forces. (Paragraph 5)
2. The lack of any
procedure for appealing against a PIN can feel very unfair to
recipients. As already specified in the guidance, the intended
recipient of a PIN should at least be given the opportunity to
give their account of the situation before a police decision is
made on the issuance of a PIN. This is not happening in many cases
at the moment. Each police force should provide details of the
complaints process to recipients alongside the original PIN. Each
police force should provide a monthly list of the number of PINs
issued, alongside details of the complaints process, on their
website. (Paragraph 7)
3. PINs can be a useful
tool for stopping harassment, meeting the needs of the victim
and addressing problematic behaviour. However, there is a clear
danger that they may be used inappropriately if they are not done
in conjunction with good risk assessment and sufficient investigation.
It is vital that police forces provide further guidance and training
to officers on the appropriate use of PINs, highlighting in particular
that the use of a PIN is generally not appropriate where an investigation
has established evidence of a course of conduct. Remedial courses
should also be given to police officers who have used PINs inappropriately.
The ACPO and College of Policing review of practice advice should
take these issues into account. We hope that our successor Committee
will monitor the issue of PINs to assess whether these improvements
take place. (Paragraph 12)
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