Complaints and compliments

Complimenting Suffolk Constabulary or making a complaint

Your views are important to us.If you are happy or unhappy with the service you have received from us we would like to hear from you as soon as possible.

Suffolk Constabulary strives to provide a quality service and aims to get it right every time. However, there may be occasions when you are dissatisfied with the service you have received.

If you are unhappy with the service provided on a particular occasion, or you believe the conduct of an individual has fallen below the standard expected, you have the right to express your dissatisfaction or make a formal complaint.

We will listen to you and take your needs and views seriously. In some instances your complaint may have arisen from a misunderstanding or a mistake on our part, rather than wrongdoing.

An upheld complaint will not always result in disciplinary proceedings against  police officers or staff. However, we will always seek to learn from complaints and change our policies and practices when appropriate.

This section outlines how you can make a complaint, and also details how you can appeal against the outcome of a complaint.

 

Reporting dissatisfaction

If you are unhappy about the way an incident has been handled, or the way someone has behaved but do not wish to complain formally, you can still raise your concerns with us and we will look into this as a quality of service matter.

You can do this by emailing psd@suffolk.pnn.police.uk, or by calling 101 or contacting your local Safer Neighbourhood Team.

Your concerns will be reviewed by a manager and any remedial action will be taken as required.

A record will be made on our Dissatisfaction Register and the outcome will be reported back to you.

 

Making a formal complaint

You can make a complaint about the way you have been treated, the service you have received, about policies and procedures or the general running of the force.

However, you can only make a complaint in the following circumstances:

1. If the conduct took place in relation to you, or
2. you witnessed the conduct, or
3. you were adversely affected by the conduct.

You can make a complaint on behalf of someone else, provided you have that person’s written consent.

 

How to make a formal Complaint

Any complaint about the Chief Constable should be made to the Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner.

Complaints about anyone else working for the Police should be made direct to Suffolk Constabulary in one of the following ways:

 

• In person - Go to a police station and ask to be seen by a supervisory officer - usually an Inspector or Sergeant. 

• By telephone: 101
• By e-mail:  psd@suffolk.pnn.police.uk
• In writing - Write a letter with a full account of the incident to:
  
  Professional Standards Department
  Norfolk and Suffolk Constabularies
  Jubilee House
  Falconers Chase
  Wymondham
  NR18 0WW
  

• Via third parties - If you would prefer, complaints can also be made via your local Citizens Advice Bureau, Racial Equality Council, Youth Offending Team or the Probation Service.

 

Details you should include

• Date  
• Time
• Location
• What was said or done 
• Whether there were witnesses
• Details of any damage or injury that took place
• The identity of the officer(s) or member(s) of staff (if known)
• Clarify exactly what your complaints are and how you would prefer to be contacte
• What happens after a complaint has been made?

 

Your complaint will be assessed and you will be contacted to discuss the options in relation to how your complaint can be dealt with. 

Where serious allegations are made, Norfolk Constabulary must refer the matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission, who may decide to supervise or manage the investigation or to conduct an independent investigation.

Where there is an indication that an officer or member of staff may have committed a criminal offence or behaved in a manner that would justify misconduct proceedings, then a complaint and misconduct investigation will take place.

We will keep you informed of progress during the investigation and send you our findings in writing.

We will identify where we can learn lessons from your complaint and review working practices accordingly. We will publish details of complaint trends publicly and report in detail to the Police and Crime Commissioner.

 

Independent Police Complaints Commission

Further information about the complaints system and the Statutory Guidance can be accessed via the IPCC  website.

However, complaints should normally be made direct to the force (or via a third party). Any complaint made to the IPCC will be automatically returned to the force unless there are exceptional circumstances that justify not passing it on.

 

Appeals

When a decision has been made about the handling of a complaint or its outcome, we will write to you outlining your right of appeal and to whom the appeal should be made. In some cases this will be the IPCC, in others it will be the Chief Constable as determined by the Police (Complaints and Misconduct) Regulations 2012.

If you have already been notified of a decision about a complaint and informed that any appeal should be made to the IPCC, further information about how to appeal to the IPCC is available on its website.

All appeals about a decision not to record a complaint or to notify the correct authority must be forwarded to the IPCC. 

If you have been notified you have a right of appeal to the Chief Constable, forms are available for each type of appeal. Factsheets about each type of appeal can be accessed via the IPCC link. If you are unable to access the forms please contact the Professional Standards Department as detailed above, who will forward you a copy by e-mail or post.

 

Appeal Forms (to Chief Constable)

Decision to disapply (stopping complaint process before it has begun) 

Outcome of a complaint after a decision to disapply

Outcome of a local resolution

Decision to discontinue an investigation

Regarding a complaint investigation