Clarify separation of SIO and firearms commander roles
Jermaine Baker Inquiry · Report into the Death of Jermaine Baker · Issued 5 July 2022 · Addressed to: College of Policing
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation, 15.1
There should be clearer guidance from the MPS, College of Policing and/or the NPCC on the separation of roles between the Senior Investigating Officer (SIO) and the Tactical and Strategic Firearms Commanders (TFC and SFC). The guidance should be clear that not only should the SIO and TFC/SFC be different individuals, but the importance of the separation of responsibilities under those roles should also be emphasised.
Jermaine Baker Inquiry, Report into the Death of Jermaine Baker · 5 Jul 2022 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The College of Policing updated its Authorised Professional Practice on Armed Policing (APP-AP) in August 2023, incorporating guidance on the separation of roles between the Senior Investigating Officer and the Tactical and Strategic Firearms Commanders (College of Policing APP-AP update, August 2023).
Response — verbatim from government
●Metropolitan Police Service — initial response
MPS formally responded on 28 October 2022 (paras 5-6). MO19 internal review commenced July 2021; DAC Barbara Gray authorised interim position separating SFC from investigation team. Chief Inspector Tom Williams led formal MO19 recommendations paper submitted to Armed Policing Delivery Group 23 February 2022.
Metropolitan Police Service · 28 Oct 2022 Written response →
●College of Policing — follow-up
College of Policing updated Authorised Professional Practice – Armed Policing (APP-AP) in August 2023 incorporating clearer guidance on the separation of roles between SIO and Tactical/Strategic Firearms Commanders.
College of Policing · 1 Aug 2023 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Aug 2023 Status as of College of Policing APP-AP update (August 2023): Completed Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.