Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

No strip search without presence of appropriate adult: Police watchdog issues guidelines over children strip searches

“We have been concerned about what we have seen in the cases referred to us involving complaints about strip searches of children,” said IOPC director general Michael Lockwood.

No strip search without presence of appropriate adult: Police watchdog issues guidelines over children strip searches

THE Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has issued recommendations to the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) over safeguarding issues highlighted by referrals concerning the strip searching of children.

Eight new referrals concerning strip searches of this nature were received from the MPS in June after the IOPC made further inquiries. Three were made last month. It has now decided to independently investigate two of them, a press release from IOPC said on Monday (1).


The IOPC has recommended the MPS should take immediate steps to ensure that any strip searches of children are being carried out in line with relevant legislation, national guidance and local policy.

The steps recommended are designed to ensure:

  • the best interests and safeguarding needs of the child are a primary consideration when deciding whether to conduct a strip search
  • the strip search of a child is conducted in the presence of an appropriate adult. Such searches should only be conducted without an appropriate adult in limited circumstances where a valid exception exists
  • the strip search of a child is conducted in such a way which, as far as possible, maintains their dignity and takes into account their health, hygiene and welfare needs.

IOPC director general Michael Lockwood said, “We have been concerned about what we have seen in the cases referred to us involving complaints about strip searches of children, and we are acting now by making recommendations stressing that existing best practice and policies should be followed by the MPS at all times.

“Given the apparent delay in some of these cases being referred to us, we will now work with the MPS to review a sample of complaints that have not been referred to us, to establish whether the process is working as it should.

“I have also written to the National Police Chief’s Council to highlight these concerns and our recommendation, so these can be shared with other forces. I have proposed a meeting between ourselves and relevant policing leads to discuss how we can work together to ensure this important learning is shared and seek assurance that relevant policies are being applied in other forces.

“By coming together in this way, I hope we can address increasing concerns about the use of strip search powers in England and Wales, in order to provide assurance that they are only being used when absolutely essential.”

The IOPC is now independently investigating two further complaints after receiving 11 voluntary referrals from the MPS relating to separate incidents between December 2019 and May 2022. They all involved children aged 14 to 17 who were strip-searched by officers in custody, or more intimate searches were carried out outside custody. It decided that the six of the referrals were suitable for local investigation by the force and the remaining three are still being assessed to determine what further action may be required from the IOPC.

Both the two new investigations involve 16-year-old boys, who the IOPC believe were strip searched in custody with no appropriate adult present after being detained. The strip searches took place at Ilford police station in January 2020, and at the Bethnal Green police station in October the same year.

It brings the total number of such investigations the IOPC is carrying out to five; the other three involve strip searches by MPS officers of a 15-year-old girl, known as Child Q, at a school in December 2020; another 15-year-old girl in a cell that same month; and another child in a separate incident earlier this year.

As part of these ongoing investigations, the IOPC will review whether existing legislation, guidance and policies remain appropriate, and that may lead to it issuing learning designed to bring about improvements.

Click here and here to see letters from Lockwood to the MPS and NPCC, respectively.   

More For You

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

FILE PHOTO: Riot police hold back protesters near a burning police vehicle in Southport, England (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Southport stabbings: Terrorism watchdog rejects definition change

TERRORISM watchdog has rejected calls to redefine terrorism following last summer's tragic Southport murders, while recommending a new offence to tackle those intent on mass killings without clear ideological motives.

Jonathan Hall KC, the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, published his highly anticipated report on Thursday (13), concluding that the existing definition of terrorism should remain unchanged despite growing concerns about violent attackers with unclear motives.

Keep ReadingShow less
Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A military piper, choir, and the Sikh soldiers of the British Army took part in the ceremony.

Commonwealth wreath-laying ceremony held in London

A WREATH-LAYING ceremony was held at the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill in London on 10 March to honour Commonwealth servicemen and women who fought in the First and Second World Wars.

Lord Boateng, chairman of the Memorial Gates Council, led the event, highlighting the importance of remembering those who served.

Keep ReadingShow less
Student visas

The ongoing negotiations focus specifically on business mobility, addressing only the relevant business visas

iStock

Student visas excluded from UK-India FTA talks, says government

THE government last week clarified that only temporary business mobility visas are part of the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations.

Other types of visas, such as student visas, will not be included in the trade deal, it was revealed during a debate in the House of Lords.

Keep ReadingShow less
India Detains Crypto Administrator Wanted by US for Laundering

Aleksej Besciokov, was charged with money laundering and accused of violating sanctions and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, according to the US Justice Department. (Photo: US Secret Service)

India arrests crypto administrator wanted by US for money laundering

INDIAN authorities have arrested a cryptocurrency exchange administrator at the request of the United States on charges of money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violations, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said on Wednesday.

The arrest follows a joint operation by the United States, Germany, and Finland, which dismantled the online infrastructure of Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer-Getty

Starmer said that the change would free up funds for doctors, nurses, and frontline services while reducing red tape to accelerate improvements in the health system. (Photo: Getty Images)

Starmer scraps NHS England, brings health service under ministerial control

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer has abolished NHS England, bringing the health service under direct ministerial control.

The decision reverses a key reform introduced by former health secretary Andrew Lansley during the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, The Guardian reported.

Keep ReadingShow less