Criminal justice joint inspections

HMICFRS has a long history of engaging in joint inspection activity with:

• HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate;
• HM Inspectorate of Probation;
• HM Inspectorate of Prisons; and
• until its closure, HM Inspectorate of Court Administration.

The Police and Justice Act 2006 established a statutory responsibility on each of the five inspectorates to:

• co-operate with each other, and other named inspectorates;
• draw up a joint inspection programme and associated framework;
• consult their Secretary of State, other inspectorates and named stakeholders in the formulation of the plan;
• act as ‘gatekeeper’ for all inspection of specified organisations; and
• delegate authority to inspect such organisations to each other, or other public authorities, as appropriate.

Other joint inspections

HMICFRS leads the programme of police custody inspections as part of the National Preventative Mechanism (NPM), to assess outcomes of detainees. We work with Care Quality Commission, which inspects health outcomes for detainees. The NPM is currently made up of 21 visiting or inspecting bodies who visit places of detention such as prisons, police custody and immigration detention centres. The NPM is coordinated by HM Inspectorate of Prisons.

The programme started in 2008 and until July 2022, police custody inspections were carried out by HMICFRS and HM Inspectorate of Prisons.