National and regional recommendations made following Shana Grice investigation as final report is published

8 Aug 2019 02:32 PM

The IOPC has formally submitted 16 learning recommendations to be considered by Sussex Police, one learning recommendation for all forces, and a learning recommendation to the College of Policing and National Police Chiefs Council following the conclusion of disciplinary proceedings from our investigation launched after the death of Shana Grice.

The recommendations, which build on early learning shared with Sussex Police during our investigation, are aimed at improving the way in which police forces respond to allegations of stalking or harassment.

Sussex Police has been asked that all staff who might encounter allegations of harassment and stalking are properly trained, with regular refresher courses scheduled.  

Further recommendations deal with improving risk assessments, correct use of existing police systems and better communication of case outcomes.

A recommendation has been submitted to all chief constables in England and Wales stating that Fixed Penalty Notices should not be issued in cases that involve stalking and harassment. Another has been issued to the College of Policing and the National Police Chief’s Council requesting they work together to ensure all forces use a standardised skills and needs approach to ensure their employees are fully equipped to perform the role they are in.

Read the recommendations in full here

IOPC Regional Director Sarah Green said: “We have been in regular contact with Sussex Police during our investigation and since its conclusion, highlighting potential issues with how the force was handling allegations of stalking and harassment.

“HMICFRS also conducted an in-depth assessment of the force’s performance on stalking and harassment and has raised concerns.

“It is vitally important that as part of our work, good practice is recognised and shared, while shortcomings, be it in policies, systems or training, are identified and improved.

“Sussex Police responded positively to our informal recommendations but the HMICFRS report published in April shows there is still work to be done. The formalising of our recommendations is another step towards ensuring improvements are made.”

On 30 July 2019 former PC Trevor Godfrey was found by an independent panel to have committed misconduct in the way he handled a report of harassment by Ms Grice. This represented the final disciplinary proceeding in relation to our investigation.

We have now published our final report into our investigation and a summary of our conclusions.