Information

Request

Please confirm the following:

How many complaints were made against The Chief Constable Nick Adderley in the year 2023 upto the date of this request (8th November 2023)

Of those complaints how many were logged and treated as complaints and how many were refused to be logged.

Of those refused to be logged, please confirm the reasons why these complaints were refused and who made the decision to refuse to log them.

Please confirm if of the above complaints, there is an active complaint that exists for fraud in public office and the date this was recorded. Please confirm this was notified to Northants Police for a crime to be logged in this regard. Please be aware this is not a request to be informed of any opinion the OPFCC may hold on if this is a proven crime or how they do not investigate crimes, merely that you have performed your duty to notify Northants Police of a crime for them to record.

Please confirm if of the above complaints, there is an active complaint that exists for breach of Covid lockdown regulations and the date this was recorded. Please confirm this was notified to Northants Police for a crime to be logged in this regard. Please be aware this is not a request to be informed of any opinion the OPFCC may hold on if this is a proven crime or how they do not investigate crimes, merely that you have performed your duty to notify Northants Police of a crime for them to record.

 

Response

I can confirm that the Office of the Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (OPFCC) holds the information requested:

How many complaints were made against The Chief Constable Nick Adderley in the year 2023 up to the date of this request (8th November 2023).

The OPFCC received 30 expressions of dissatisfaction regarding the Chief Constable between 01/01/2023 and 08/11/2023.

Of those complaints how many were logged and treated as complaints and how many were refused to be logged.

Of the 30 expressions of dissatisfaction received only 1 has been formally recorded under schedule 3 of the Police Reform Act 2002. In addition to this, we have also recorded 2 conduct matters.

The OPFCC must record complaints against the Chief Constable in line with the relevant legislation, regulations and Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) Statutory Guidance, which sets out the criteria for recording complaints. Therefore, each expression of dissatisfaction about the Chief Constable must be carefully considered to determine whether a complaint should be formally recorded under schedule 3 of the Police Reform Act 2002. The OPFCC can also record conduct matters against the Chief Constable, when it is considered that there is an indication the Chief Constable may have behaved in a manner that could justify the bringing of misconduct or criminal proceedings. The OPFCC can also still record a conduct matter where we have determined that a complaint should not be recorded. For example, where we have received complaints regarding content seen online or reported by the media, we cannot record a complaint as the complainant is not considered to be adversely affected, however we can consider whether a conduct matter should be recorded.

Of those refused to be logged, please confirm the reasons why these complaints were refused and who made the decision to refuse to log them.

As the OPFCC’s Director for Delivery,  Paul Fell is the delegated decision maker in relation to complaints against the Chief Constable.

Rationale	Number of complaints not recorded
The conduct complained of does not relate to the specific conduct of the Chief Constable or relates to a responsibility the Chief Constable has delegated	3
The complainant is not considered to be adversely affected by content they have seen online or in the media	2
The complainant is not considered to be adversely affected by content they have seen online or in the media – conduct matter recorded	2
The complainant is not considered to be adversely affected by content they have seen online or in the media relating to the Chief Constable wearing the South Atlantic Medal	22

 

These decisions were made in line with the IOPC Focus Issue 16.

Please confirm if of the above complaints, there is an active complaint that exists for fraud in public office and the date this was recorded. Please confirm this was notified to Northants Police for a crime to be logged in this regard. Please be aware this is not a request to be informed of any opinion the OPFCC may hold on if this is a proven crime or how they do not investigate crimes, merely that you have performed your duty to notify Northants Police of a crime for them to record.

The OPFCC has not received a complaint regarding an offence of fraud in public office. The Independent Office for Police Conduct have publicly confirmed they are examining possible offences of misconduct in public office and fraud by false representation. This is in relation to a conduct matter referred to them by the OPFCC, however these potential offences were identified by the Independent Office for Police Conduct and were not part of the initial complaint submission or any related materials. This matter remains a live investigation.

Please confirm if of the above complaints, there is an active complaint that exists for breach of Covid lockdown regulations and the date this was recorded. Please confirm this was notified to Northants Police for a crime to be logged in this regard. Please be aware this is not a request to be informed of any opinion the OPFCC may hold on if this is a proven crime or how they do not investigate crimes, merely that you have performed your duty to notify Northants Police of a crime for them to record.

The OPFCC has not recorded a complaint against the Chief Constable in relation to any alleged breach of Covid Regulations. However, the OPFCC did record a conduct matter on the 06/11/2023 and referred the matter to the Independent Office for Police Conduct on the same day. Not all matters that are a breach of legislation need to be recorded as crimes. An alleged breach of COVID regulations does not require to be recorded as a crime as it is not a recordable offence under Home Office counting rules.