Quickly exit this site by pressing the Escape key Leave this site
We use some essential cookies to make our website work. We’d like to set additional cookies so we can remember your preferences and understand how you use our site.
You can manage your preferences and cookie settings at any time by clicking on “Customise Cookies” below. For more information on how we use cookies, please see our Cookies notice.
Your cookie preferences have been saved. You can update your cookie settings at any time on the cookies page.
Your cookie preferences have been saved. You can update your cookie settings at any time on the cookies page.
Sorry, there was a technical problem. Please try again.
This site is a beta, which means it's a work in progress and we'll be adding more to it over the next few weeks. Your feedback helps us make things better, so please let us know what you think.
Title: IOPC learning recommendation made under paragraph 28A of schedule 3 to the Police Reform Act 2002.
Our reference: IX-68-18
Author: Prevention and Learning Team, Directorate of Professional Standards
On 18th July 2018, a female was reported missing to the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS). The informant stated that the missing female had not been seen for a month, her home address had been checked several times but she was not there, and that her suitcase was missing. Initial checks were conducted which proved negative. The next day, further information was received which indicated that the female was a frequent traveller and that she had likely travelled abroad forgetting to tell anyone; the missing person’s report was therefore closed. The original informant reported the female missing again at the end of July and further checks were carried out which indicated that the female had not travelled abroad. Additional enquiries were made to locate the missing female and in August 2018 MPS officers found the female deceased in her home where it appeared she had been there for a significant period of time.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigated the circumstances of the incident. During the course of its investigation the IOPC made the following learning recommendations to the MPS in October 2019:
The IOPC recommends that the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) ensures that all Local Resolution Team members across the MPS are aware of their roles and responsibilities under the Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol.
This follows an investigation where two missing person reports were received in relation to a woman who was later found dead. Our investigation found that it could not be evidenced officers had adhered to the force’s Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol in responding to the reports. There was no evidence that certain actions had been completed. We also found that it was not possible to identify which individuals had been responsible for
progressing actions.
The Local Resolution Team (LRT) Policy Guidance was updated in July 2019 to clarify roles and responsibilities and will be relaunched through publishing within the Missing Persons Policy in 2020. The LRT protocol for the initial investigation and risk assessment of missing persons remains a standard approach across the 12 Basic Command Units (BCUs). Action will continue to be taken by the Lead Responsible Officer (LRO) and the Continuous Policing Improvement Command (CPIC) to actively encourage the implementation of the LRT Missing Persons Investigation Protocol and to ensure staff working within the LRT have the requisite knowledge to fulfil their role. Over a three month period an inspector will be visiting every BCU to provide guidance and assistance to team inspectors, for quality assurance purposes and to ensure consistency in investigations. These visits will commence in January 2020 and will focus on the LRT and Duty Officer links and their roles in managing missing persons. Any issues raised will be taken to the Commander for Frontline Policing as well as the CPIC Missing Persons Team. The Commander will then work with the BCU HQ Superintendent and Response Superintendent to ensure any improvements or learning are implemented. CPIC are also developing a Webinar (internet seminar) dedicated to the first 48 hours of missing person investigations, including an instructional video which will focus on the process and benefits of the LRT. This will be aimed at Frontline Police Officers and is expected to be in place by
March 2020.
In early December 2019, the Commander for Frontline Policing delivered a presentation on the importance of the Missing Persons Investigation Protocol to BCU Early Response Policing Team and HQ Superintendents. The delivery included signposting to the protocol and the MPS’s expectation that staff must have knowledge of its content. In addition, the Commander underlined the impact of not having full awareness of this protocol and set out expectations regarding service delivery and accountability for Superintendents to dip sample each missing
person record.
The IOPC recommends that the Metropolitan Police Service ensures that it is possible to identify who is (or was) responsible for progressing actions under the Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol, and consider how this is recorded on MPS systems to ensure this information is easily accessible to everyone working on the investigation.
This follows an investigation where two missing person reports were received in relation to a woman who was later found dead. Our investigation found that it could not be evidenced officers had adhered to the force’s Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol in responding to the reports. There was no evidence that certain actions had been completed. We also found that it was not possible to identify which individuals had been responsible for progressing actions.
The ownership and progression of live missing person cases is an essential part of an investigation as without it, the MPS cannot expect to respond to changes in circumstances and react in a manner proportionate to risk.
The process many UK forces implement across the initial handling of missing persons, involves ownership by frontline officers who operate across 24 hour shifts. In the MPS, for low and medium risk cases, frontline officers take ownership for the initial 48 hours and high risk missing persons are owned by the Safeguarding Detective Inspector. The LRT Policy Guidance provides clear pathways to transfer ownership according to risk level, however cases are rarely owned by an individual as reactive crime allegations would be.
The MPS recognises the importance of ensuring there is clear inspector ownership at the point of shift change handovers, and such ownership includes the progression of actions to be taken. Currently Duty Officers (Inspectors) hand over medium risk ongoing missing person enquiries at the start of their shift to the next Duty Officer. To improve this, the MPS is reviewing its recording systems and processes to clarify ownership of investigative actions and the review will be complete by June 2020.
The IOPC recommends that the Metropolitan Police Service implements quality reviews of missing person reports to monitor compliance with force policy, including the MPS toolkits and the Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol. This will ensure that any concerns regarding adherence to policy can be addressed.
This follows an investigation where two missing person reports were received in relation to a woman who was later found dead. Our investigation found that it could not be evidenced officers had adhered to the force’s Revised Missing Persons Investigation Protocol in responding to the reports. There was no evidence that certain actions had been completed. We also found that it was not possible to identify which individuals had been responsible for
progressing actions.
The MPS already has methods of thematic review across missing persons. The referenced case audits completed by the Child Safeguarding Delivery Group (CSDG) are: Specialist Crime Review Group reviews of cases where a missing person is found deceased; the implementation of “health-checks” to BCU), where the BCU conduct level 1 assurance of their safeguarding investigations, including missing people, which will be amalgamated into the
Data Quality Ethics and Assurance Boards once they are embedded; organisational risk and learning reviews (missing persons is one of the 12 safeguarding areas reviewed within this rolling timetable). These prompt BCUs to review their cases, manage risk in the relevant operational area, and provide a clear route for them to manage any barriers hindering their ability to achieve best practice.
However to improve the ongoing review of all cases, the MPS is incorporating ‘Data Quality Ethics and Assurance Boards’ to prompt ongoing reviews on a dip sampling basis. This initiative is being overseen by the Commander for Frontline Policing. Reviews will include safeguarding, data quality and basic checklists for safeguarding areas including missing persons. The reviews will be undertaken by BCUs and Operational Command Units but
overseen by a central board annually throughout the year. This is expected to commence this
month.
The quarterly thematic reviews will continue to feature missing persons and concern the wider
response by each BCU to this business area.