Requesting a review of your Complaint Outcome

This page contains information on how to request a review of the outcome of your complaint against Surrey Police.

Please note that this process relates only to public complaints recorded by Surrey Police on or after 1 February 2020.  

Any public complaint recorded prior to that date will be subject to the previous appeals legislation.

Your right to a review of your complaint outcome

If you remain dissatisfied with the way that Surrey Police has dealt with your complaint, you have a right to request a review of the outcome provided.

Depending on the circumstances of your complaint, the application for a review will be considered by the Local Policing Body who is either your Police and Crime Commissioner or the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The IOPC is the relevant review body where:

1. The Appropriate Authority is a Local Policing Body i.e. the Police and Crime Commissioner 
2. The complaint is about the conduct of a Senior Police Officer (above the rank of Chief Superintendent)
3. The Appropriate Authority is unable to satisfy itself from the complaint alone, that the conduct complained of (if it were proved) would not justify the bringing of criminal or disciplinary proceedings against a person serving with the police, or would not involve the infringement of a person’s rights under Article 2 or 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights
4. The complaint has been, or must be, referred to the IOPC
5. The IOPC is treating the complaint as having been referred
6. The complaint arises from the same incident as a complaint falling within 2 to 4 above
7. Any part of the complaint falls within 2 to 6 above

In any other case, the relevant review body is your Police and Crime Commissioner.

In Surrey, the Commissioner delegates the responsibility for considering reviews to our Independent Complaint Review Manager, who is independent from Surrey Police.

Before requesting a review

Before you can make an application for a review, you must have received written notification of the outcome of the handling of your complaint from Surrey Police. 

Applications for reviews must be made within 28 days starting with the day after you were provided with the details of your right to review, either at the conclusion of the investigation or other handling of your complaint. 

What happens next

A review must consider whether the outcome of your complaint was reasonable and proportionate.  On completion of the review the Independent Complaints Review Manager may make recommendations to Surrey Police, but they cannot compel the Force to act.

However, in the event that a recommendation is made, Surrey Police must provide a written response that will be provided to the Commissioner and to you as the person seeking the review of your complaint. 

The Independent Complaint Review Manager may, upon completion of the review, decide that no further action is required.  

Following both outcomes you will be provided with a written response detailing the review decision and the reasons for that decision.

Please note that upon completion of this process there is no further right of review. 

How to request a review

To request an Independent Complaint Review by our office, follow the instructions on our Contact Us page or call us on 01483 630200.

You can also write to us using the address below:

Complaint Review Manager
Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey
PO Box 412
Guildford, Surrey
GU3 1YJ

What to include in your request

The Complaint Review Form will ask for the below information. If you are requesting a Review by letter or over the phone, you must state:

• The details of the complaint
• The date on which the complaint was made
• The name of the force or Local Policing Body whose decision is subject of the application; and 
• The date on which you were provided with the details about your right to review at the conclusion of the investigation or other handling of your complaint
• The reasons why you are requesting a review
  

Important information

Please note the following important information:

• Upon receipt of a request for a review, an initial validity assessment will be carried out to determine the appropriate action to be taken. You will be updated once this has been completed
• By requesting a review, you are providing consent that you agree to the sharing of your personal data and information relating to your specific complaint case, for the purposes of progressing your review in accordance with the law 

If you require any adjustments to support you to make a review application, please let us know by using our Contact Us page or by calling us on 01483 630200. You can also write to us using the address above.

See our Accessibility Statement for more information about the steps we’ve taken to make our information and processes more accessible.