POST-INCIDENT PROCEDURES Q&A
Q: What is a Post-Incident Procedure (PIP)?
A: A PIP takes place following on from an incident that may involve death or serious injury, a failing in command or supervision or danger to officers, staff or the public. Officers will be asked to provide a statement and may be asked to an interview by an independent investigation agency (IIA) or Professional Standards Department (PSD).
Officers may be classed as a key police witness (KPW) depending on their role. All involved will be asked to provide an account to the investigation. If you become a suspect, you will not be following the PIP process and alternative arrangements will be made to obtain your evidential account.
Q: What happens when a PIP begins?
A: Once a PIP has been called a “conferring reminder” will be given. This is to remind everyone involved not to confer about their honest held belief in relation to a use of force or what was in their mind at the time of the incident. If you have something important to pass on, do so and make a record of what was said, to whom and why.
You will be directed to attend your local PIP suite to begin the process and will then have access to Federation colleagues to support you throughout. If you want advice in advance, call your local Federation on the way to the venue.
Physical and mental welfare is important, so early contact with your Federation is essential to make sure you have the correct advice and support.
Q: What steps should you take if you are involved in a PIP?
A: Making sure you are up to date with your training will help you as compliance with policy and procedures are reviewed. The investigation could apportion blame if you failed to adhere to what is required. This can range from failing to book out items of kit you are required to, failing to conduct vehicle inspections or not doing custody suite checks and so on. Prevention is better than cure, so ensure you know what is required of you for every duty. Keep records to protect yourself if you cannot do something and inform a supervisor.
If you have access to body-worn video (BWV) – use it. You can describe what is taking place at a scene or incident as you may not be able to write or type an account.
Q: Who is involved in a PIP process? A: The process is run by a Post-Incident
Manager (PIM) who must be trained and accredited.
The PIM will work with an appointed officer who will be present during some of the stages to safeguard the process and provide support to the PIM in a variety of tasks.
Your own PSD will be present and will work with the PIM, your Fed rep and others to review the incident and evidential processes that take place.
An IIA will arrive and may take over the investigation or direct the host force to continue while taking an overview.
Your Fed rep will be trained and accredited to provide access to a wide range of advice.
If you are a subscribing Federation member, legal advice will be called for you, if not, you will have to pay and provide your own legal advice.
Q: What takes place during a PIP process?
A: The people mentioned above should introduce themselves, explain their role and who they are. It is a very simple process and is a proven way to capture evidence in an open and transparent manner that assists the investigation.
Depending on your involvement and subject to any welfare concerns you will be asked to provide an account before going off duty. This is normally the Stage 3 for most officers and should comply with the requirements of the relevant College of Policing (CoP) guidance and Authorised Professional Practice (APP).
Q: What happens after the PIP?
A: There should be a period of a few days before you are asked to provide a further account. This Stage 4 account will be more detailed, and you should be allowed to review your supporting BWV, contemporaneous notes, logs and so on to help you make your statement. The PIP process is not a memory test, it is there to achieve best evidence.
If you are refused access to information at any stage of a PIP process, make sure this is accounted for in your statements. You may be asked to attend for a formal interview to provide clarity.
There should be updates on a regular basis about what is taking place with the investigation.
Seek advice and support from your local Federation representative if you have any questions.
Leaflets & downloads (
polfed.org) 39 I POLICE I DECEMBER 2021
NEWS IN BRIEF FOCUS ON PIP
SAVE THE DATE The Police Federation Annual National Conference 2022 will take place in Manchester in May next year. The conference will take place on 17 and 18 May, and we hope to see you there.
In 2021, the conference was
held virtually for the first time, and the 2020 event was cancelled all together due to the pandemic.
PAY AND MORALE Throughout November, members were asked to fill out the national Pay and Morale Survey 2021. The findings from the survey,
which will be published as soon as possible next year, will provide the Federation with crucial evidence to support the ongoing national pay campaign in calling for fairer remuneration for police officers. In May 2021, the Police Federation of England and Wales withdrew from the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) saying it was no longer fit for purpose and questioning its independence since the Government set its remit.
SMART MOTORWAYS National Federation Chair John Apter responded to the latest Transport Committee report on smart motorways. He said: “Since their increased
roll out, I have continuously raised concerns over the lack of safety and confidence in smart motorways, as well as concerns around the vital technology on which the scheme depends not always working. Motorways are unforgiving places at the best of times, but smart motorways are inherently dangerous and put more lives at risk than is ever acceptable. "The Government must act
on these recommendations, to ensure that all of the motorway network is as safe as possible for the travelling public and also for all of my colleagues who police the network on a daily basis.”
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