“Accountability is crucial for public confidence in policing and these reports show how the hundreds of investigations we carry out each year ensure that officers’ actions are properly scrutinised.
“The vast majority of police uphold the professional standards the public expect of them. The work they do carries a combination of personal risk, fast decision making and a great deal of sensitivity that is unmatched by any other job. But it is also a job that cannot be done without the confidence of the communities the police serve, or without there being independent scrutiny.
“The cases we investigate which result in disciplinary sanctions by forces or result in criminal proceedings by the Crown Prosecution Service are one end of the spectrum in how police are held to account.
“At the other end of the spectrum we have made over 400 learning recommendations to police forces and policing bodies to improve policing practices through changes to policies, training, supervision and culture. This ensures the system changes, and that mistakes are not repeated.
“Sometimes our investigations find no wrongdoing. That is the whole point of independent scrutiny - providing assurance that conduct has been looked at independently and impartially, with accountability taking many different forms.
“Since the IOPC was set up, we have made great progress to improve the police complaints system. We have and will continue to improve our own in performance with 90% of investigations now completed within 12 months. We have pushed successfully for much needed changes and will continue to do so in future.”