Police ethics committees in England and Wales: Exploratory online and web surveys

Drawing from practice and learning of Clinical Ethics Committees, Police Ethics Committees began to emerge in the years following the statutory creation of the College of Policing in 2012, but there is little research on their form and effectiveness. This paper reports the results of exploratory online and web surveys undertaken in 2021. The surveys revealed committees with the word ‘ethics’ in their title fell within two different types. First, discursive and advisory committees, largely inclusive but with those operated by the large forces in London and Greater Manchester functioning more like expert panels. Second, some committees operated within formal governance structures, receiving reports and scrutinizing aspects of police performance including complaints. Variation in operation between Police Ethics Committees was evident in respect of composition, web presence and reporting mechanisms. Further research on the operation and effectiveness of Ethics Committees is required.