Ref: 1007914
By email:
14 October 2019
Dear Mr Alanasi,
Re: Request for Information
Thank you for your email received by the IOPC on 28 September 2019 regarding
your request for information. I can confirm that this request has been processed
under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI).
I note that you have requested:
How many complaints were made about Heathrow Airport Police working inside
Terminal 2.Since 21st December 2015 up until this date today.
Having considered your request I can confirm that the information you have requested
is not held by the IOPC.
All complaints made to a police force must be formally recorded by the force
concerned in the first instance before they can be considered under the Police
Reform Act. The majority of those complaints are then dealt with by the force
themselves.
Forces are required to refer certain incidents to the IOPC regardless of whether
there has been a complaint. These referrals originate from one of three possible
sources: a complaint, a death or serious injury (DSI) or a recordable conduct matter
(RCM). A complaint can also be voluntarily referred to the IOPC, or the IOPC may
‘Call in’ the complaint where it sees fit.
Complainants may also send their complaint directly to the IOPC and our role is
normally limited to passing the complaint on to the relevant police force so they can
consider whether it should be formally recorded. The IOPC has no further
involvement in the vast majority of these complaints and records only minimal
information about them. Therefore, it is important to note that direct complaints made
to the IOPC account for only some of the complaints recorded by the police service
each year.
While we do hold some data in relation to referrals, this only represents data for
complaints that meet the referral criteria outlined above, not the total number of
complaints made about Heathrow Airport Police. For this reason, you would need to
contact the Metropolitan Police Service for the information relating to this particular
request.
We do collect data from police forces about complaints- however this is broken down
by force and not to the level of detail to provide you with this information.
I am sorry we are unable to be of assistance. More information about the role of the
IOPC can be found in the IOPC Annual Report (2018/19).
This can be found on the IOPC website using the following link:
http://www.policeconduct.gov.uk/page/annual-report-and-plans
If you are not satisfied with this response you may request an independent internal
review by our FOI appeals officer, who has had no involvement in dealing with your
request.
If you wish to complain about any aspect of this decision, please contact:
Internal Reviewer
Independent Office for Police Conduct
90 High Holborn
London
WC1V 6BH
All emails requesting a review should be sent directly to
: xxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Should you remain dissatisfied after this internal review, you will have a right of
complaint to the Information Commissioner; however, I should point out that under
section 50(2)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act, you are normally obliged to
exhaust the IOPC’s own internal complaint mechanism before complaining to the
Information Commissioner.
Yours sincerely,
Thea Walton
Head of Knowledge and Oversight
Independent Office for Police Conduct