How to challenge our decisions

If you have any questions or need more information about a decision we have made on an appeal, a review or an investigation, please contact the person dealing with your case. This is often the easiest way to explain the reasons for the decision and answer any questions you have.

You should be aware that, except in limited circumstances, our appeal, review  and  investigation  decisions are final. This means that the decisions we make and communicate to those involved in our cases can only be challenged and overturned through the judicial review process. For this reason we do not accept complaints about our case decisions.

The following information will help you understand what to consider if you are unhappy with a case-related decision made by the IOPC.

At the end of an IOPC investigation we produce a report setting out what happened, what evidence our investigators found and our analysis of the evidence. We also make decisions about:

whether the police officers/staff involved should face any disciplinary action or action to improve their performance
whether, in certain circumstances, to refer matters to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). The CPS is responsible for deciding whether anyone should be charged with a criminal offence.

The Victims’ Right to Review (VRR) scheme applies to most of our independent and managed/directed investigations where we have conducted a criminal investigation.

It gives victims the right to request a review if we have decided not to refer a criminal investigation to the CPS for a charging decision. The scheme applies to decisions about CPS referrals made on or after 1 December 2020.

We classify someone as a victim where they:
allege that they suffered harm, including physical, mental or emotional harm or economic loss, which was directly caused by a criminal offence, or
have had an allegation made on their behalf, or
have been contacted as a victim in the course of an IOPC investigation

A victim can also be a close relative of a person who died during or following police contact, where it is alleged their death was directly caused by a criminal offence. A ‘close relative’ refers to the victim’s spouse, partner, parents, siblings or any dependents. In certain circumstances other family members, including guardians and carers, may also be considered.

Requests for review may be received from someone acting on behalf of a victim in certain circumstances. This will be considered on a case by case basis, and we may need to obtain the written authorisation of the victim.

If you are a victim and the VRR scheme applies to you, we will notify you of your right to ask for a review when we tell you about our provisional decision not to make a referral to the CPS.

Requests under the VRR scheme should normally be made within 28 days of the date of the letter notifying you of the above decision.

However, some offences have a statutory time limit; this means that a person must be charged within six months of committing the alleged offence. If a charging time limit applies, we may require that a VRR request is submitted more quickly. We will let you know if this is the case.

If the request is made after the specified deadline, we will ask why your request is late. If there are exceptional circumstances for the delay, we may still consider it.

When a VRR is requested, a ‘reviewer’ will be allocated. The reviewer will have had no decision-making role in the investigation. Wherever possible, the reviewer will not:
• be based in the office where the investigation was conducted
• be based in the same office as the person who made the provisional decision not to make a referral to the CPS

The reviewer will consider the investigation report and have access to the evidence gathered during the investigation. They will also take into account why you feel a referral to the CPS should be made, provided that you submit your views before the relevant deadline.

The reviewer will aim to carry out the review as quickly as possible and within 28 days. This timeframe will be shorter where the offences involved have a statutory time limit for charging.

If the reviewer determines that the provisional decision not to refer the matter to the CPS should stand, then that provisional decision will be confirmed. Otherwise, it will be replaced with a new decision about whether to make a referral to the CPS.

We will notify you about the outcome to the VRR process. You will not be able to request a further review once we have let you know the VRR outcome.

Should you wish to challenge the review decision, you can apply for a judicial review (please refer to the section above for more details).

Read our Victim's Right to Review policy and find out more information on our Victim's Right to Review scheme

Read our response to the 2020 consultation on the victims’ right to review scheme.

The IOPC has the power to require a re-investigation.

We can use this power from the point when a report on a directed or independent investigation of a complaint, recordable conduct matter or death or serious injury matter has been completed and sent to an IOPC decision maker for them to make end of investigation decisions.

A conduct matter is any matter which is not and has not been the subject of a complaint, where there is an indication that a person serving with the police may have committed a criminal offence or behaved in a manner which would justify disciplinary proceedings.

The decisions made at the end of an investigation include decisions about referral to the CPS, whether any officers/staff should face disciplinary proceedings, etc. This power cannot be used to reinvestigate a local or managed investigation.

We only use this power where we are satisfied that there are compelling reasons to do so. To find compelling reasons, we must be satisfied that:

A: the original investigation was flawed to the extent that but for the flaw the IOPC would have reached a different end of investigation conclusion on discipline, performance and/referral to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) or;

B: there is significant new information that requires further investigation which, had it been available, would have led to a different end of IOPC investigation conclusion on discipline, performance and/or referral to the CPS, and;

C: in respect of either A or B, a re-investigation is necessary in the public interest.

On receipt of an indication that a re-investigation may be required, we will conduct a review to inform a decision maker that the ‘compelling reason’ test is satisfied. An indication may come to our attention in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, new evidence being identified or a potential material flaw in the investigation, coming to light through, or following:

IOPC internal evidence
a public law challenge
a complaint
an inquest
a criminal trial

The review will not involve or constitute any further investigation. The reviewer will consider whether a re-investigation is required. This decision will be based on an examination of the original investigation and consideration of any alleged flaws or new information.

Following the conclusion of the review, we will reach a provisional decision. The decision will provide a detailed rationale of how the decision was reached. This will then be shared with relevant stakeholders and interested parties. Stakeholders will then typically have 28 days to make representations on the provisional decision. Following the representations received, we will consider all views provided before making a decision and will communicate the outcome to all relevant parties.

If it is decided that a re-investigation is required, we will then determine whether it will be an independent or a directed investigation.

If you have information that could be considered to be compelling reasons to re-investigate a directed or independent investigation, please write to the person responsible for the case. Any written representations must do more than simply disagree with the original findings of the investigation. You must highlight potential material flaws or significant new evidence. This will then be passed for a review.

How to challenge our decisions

Judicial review

Victims’ Right to Review

Re-investigation of an IOPC investigation

FOI and information request complaints

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