Source · IOPC Learning Case

Collision following pursuit - Thames Valley Police, May 2019

Thames Valley Police Ref: 2019/119444 Recommended 20 Feb 2020 Response due 16 Apr 2020

Road traffic incidents

At approximately 11.20pm on 13 May 2019, a Thames Valley Police officer pursued a vehicle driven by a woman in Oxfordshire. The pursuit lasted for approximately ten minutes and ended when the woman’s vehicle crashed into a tree. The woman sustained fractures to metatarsals in her right foot. During the investigation, investigators spoke with the TVP driving school, reviewed the relevant local and national policies, as well as the officer’s driver training history, and obtained several accounts from the officer …

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Recommendations

2 total

Recommendation 1

The IOPC recommends that Thames Valley Police (TVP) makes sure that all relevant checks are carried out before officers who have transferred from another force are authorised to drive with Thames Valley Police. This should include ensuring that officers meet any requirements under force policy, including requirements regarding recent operational driving experience. This follows a case where an officer re-joined TVP from another force and was involved in a pursuit when they were not authorised to do so under TVP policy. Our investigation found when the officer provided their driver training records from the previous force, the same authorisations were added to the officer’s Thames Valley Police driving record. Thames Valley Police driving school subsequently established that the officer had not driven operationally for over 12 months. Do you accept the recommendation? Yes

Addressed to: Thames Valley Police

Linked bodies: Thames Valley Police

Accepted

Force response

Accepted action: TVP fully accepts this recommendation. We will put into place a process to review and record training from an external force, this will be undertaken by Driver Training. We will ensure that the officer is aware of the agreed level of transferable skills, and the subsequent driving authorisation for TVP and any training requirements. We will also ensure that the joining officer is briefed in the way TVP manage and deliver driver risk, and ensure that the joining officer is fully briefed on key elements around key driver and risk policies or procedures. A process and the required recording forms have already been drafted, and Driver Training inputs to the Transferees Course are in the process of revision in line with the new process. All relevant documents and rationale for decision making will be retained on the officers driver record.

Recommendation 2

The IOPC recommends that all information regarding an officer’s driving authorisation/category is stored centrally within the TVP driving school and where there is a change the driving school ensures this change is reflected on its records without delay. A driving permit reflecting any such changes should be issued to the officer concerned without delay, with a process to acknowledge receipt. This follows a case where an officer re-joined TVP from another force and was involved in a pursuit when they were not authorised to do so under TVP policy. Our investigation found when the officer’s authority to engage in the initial phase of a pursuit was withdrawn, their TVP driving record was not updated to reflect this change for one month. When the record was updated, a new TVP driving permit was printed to reflect this change and sent to the officer via the force’s internal post. However, the officer said they did not receive it. When a document is sent through internal post, there is no way to track it and/or determine if it is received by the recipient. Do you accept the recommendation? Yes

Addressed to: all information regarding an officer

Linked bodies: all information regarding an officer

Accepted

Force response

Accepted action: TVP partially accepts this recommendation. In this case the Officer signed a document as a true record of his driving assessment, which clearly stated that ‘Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES are you authorised to pursue vehicles’. This acknowledgement was recorded on the officer's file on the 17-09-2018 after his Driving Assessment. However, TVP do accept that the process of posting out a paper licence (which reflects the changes Officers are notified off and have acknowledged in their Driving Assessment) needs to be changed. We will put into place a process whereby Officers and Staff can view their Driving Record in order to dispense with the need for paper licences. We will retain the process of requiring Officers and Staff to sign their Assessment paperwork (as they do now) and this will be retained within their Driving Record (as it is now). We will formally remind Driver Trainers that in any instance where a Driving Authorisation has been revoked or changed, more emphasis should be applied by them to ensure the student is aware of the impact, and in all instances their acknowledgement is properly recorded.