Section three The NPM in 2014–15
custody, court custody and immigration
Expectations, and drafted new Expectations
for the close supervision centres (CSC)
system, informed by an analysis of applicable
human rights standards. These Expectations
were piloted during an inspection of CSCs
in March 2015 – HMI Prisons’ first inspection
of the system as a whole. They are being
revised in light of the inspection and will be
published in 2015–16.
Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary
(England and Wales) (HMIC) conducted a
thematic inspection, commissioned by the
Home Secretary, focusing on the welfare
of vulnerable people in police custody. The
scope of this inspection included the decision
to arrest, alternatives to arrest considered
and/or available, and treatment of detainees
before their arrival at the police custody
suite. The thematic report, published in
March 2015, found that in many instances
custody for vulnerable people could have
been avoided if alternatives had been
explored. The lack of suitable alternative
accommodation or health care arrangements
led to people with mental health problems
and children spending long periods in
custody. Police custody provision had a
significant role as a function of the health
and social care system. The report also found
that people from black and minority ethnic
groups were overrepresented in the number
of people detained.104 The report made
several recommendations, and a national
group chaired by the Home Office is now
overseeing their implementation.
HMIC conducted 11 police custody
inspections jointly with HMI Prisons during
the year. Using the NPM self-assessment,
learning from the vulnerability thematic
inspection and other sources, HMIC and
HMI Prisons identified a number of areas for
improvement, which are being developed
into a change programme for delivery in the
next reporting year. This will take a more
robust and effective approach to inspection
and OPCAT requirements
In 2014–15, HMIC introduced a new approach
to its inspections of the police service
– 'PEEL' (police effectiveness, efficiency
and legitimacy). This programme is being
developed to provide a rounded assessment
of every aspect of what police forces do,
using criteria that allow graded judgments to
be made. The PEEL programme could have
implications for the way HMIC approaches
inspections of custody, and this is being
addressed in the scope of the change
programme for custody inspection referred
to above.
The Regulation and Quality Improvement
Authority (RQIA) monitored almost 11,000
forms received by health and social care
trusts to establish the appropriateness of
detention and guardianship orders and
treatment plans, advising trusts to address
any concerns it identified. Over the year, RQIA
noted and informed the trusts of 29 errors/
omissions that led to improper detentions.
RQIA conducted 66 primary inspections
of mental health and learning disability
wards, as part of a planned programme
and in response to concerns raised through
complaints and whistleblowing. Inspections
104 HM Inspectorate of Constabulary (2015), op. cit.
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