Do I have the right of appeal?
If we do not record a case or we close a case without taking any action you will have a right of appeal to the Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary (or an officer delegated by him).
If he considers it was inappropriate to take no action, he will notify you and inform you what action it is proposed to take in relation to the complaint. However, if we had permission from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to take no action you will not have a right of appeal.
Complaints about policy and procedure
You do not have any right of appeal against the outcome of complaints of this nature.
Complaints about conduct
For complaints which are locally handled you will have a right of appeal against the outcome to the Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary (or an officer delegated by him), although in a small number of cases it will be the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). If the Chief Constable considers that on the basis of the evidence available, the outcome was inappropriate, he may take whatever action he feels is necessary.
For complaints which have been formally investigated by the Professional Standards Department you will have the right of appeal to the IOPC against the following:
- Findings of the investigation
- Proposed action to be taken against staff subject of the allegations
- The quality of information provided in the final report
- Any decision not to refer a criminal allegation to the Crown Prosecution Service
If the IOPC disagree with our findings and proposed action they may direct us to take any further action necessary.
All appeals must be made within 28 days of you being notified of our decisions.