3 Response Accepted

Disapply 12-month limit for CSA police complaints

Recommendation

The Chair and Panel recommend that the National Police Chiefs' Council ensures that complaints relating to child sexual abuse are no longer 'disapplied' by police forces on the grounds that the incident involved took place more than 12 months before the complaint was submitted.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
The National Police Chiefs' Council lead for Complaints and Misconduct, Chief Constable Craig Guildford, advised all Chief Officers on 16 January 2019 that complaints relating to child sexual abuse should no longer be 'disapplied' due to the 12-month limit, with this interim measure implemented immediately. The Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) subsequently published statutory guidance on the police complaints system on 1 February 2020, which would incorporate this change. The government's progress tracker, updated in May 2023, indicates this recommendation as completed.
How was this assessed?
Assessed by gemini-2.5-flash on 24 Mar 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk
Jurisdiction
England
Section Reference
C
Response
Accepted
Not Applicable UK Government Initial Response
20 Dec 2018

This recommendation is directed at the National Police Chiefs' Council which has responded separately to the Inquiry.

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Accepted UK Government Follow-up
22 May 2023

On 16 January 2019, Chief Constable Craig Guildford (National Police Chiefs' Council lead for Complaints and Misconduct) advised all Chief Officers that complaints relating to child sexual abuse should no longer be disapplied on the ground that it took place more than 12 months before the complaint was submitted. This interim measure was implemented with immediate effect. On 1 February 2020, the Independent Office of Police Conduct published statutory guidance on the police complaints system. The statutory guidance no longer includes a chapter on disapplication.

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Source
Inquiry IICSA
Report Interim Report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse 25 Apr 2018
View Source
Responsible Bodies
National Police Chiefs Council Primary
Themes & Tags
Complex police complaints Victims' Code breaches (CSA) Police Complaints Child Sexual Abuse
Recommendation age 7.9 yrs
Last formal update 1038 days ago