Essex Police rated good on counter-corruption and vetting

Essex Police chief constable Ben-Julian Harrington congratulated new recruits at a passing out parade in November, although 119 applicants were rejected in the last year

Essex Police has been commended for how it vets its officers and staff.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Service (HMICFRS) rated vetting and counter-corruption measures as "good".

It also said it did not disproportionately refuse applicants who declared protected characteristics like gender reassignment.

However, the report said the counter-corruption unit needed more staff to enable better intelligence collection.

HMICFRS said the force had "good awareness" of staff who were not vetted properly

Inspectors said they examined the force in November, and were told it had 6,294 officers, community support officers, special constables and civilian staff.

There were 33 individuals without the "correct" vetting, but HMICFRS said the force had "good awareness of these cases" and that some of these staff were awaiting a higher level of assessment.

The force said 119 applicants had been rejected in the last 12 months.

HMICFRS also found:

• Analysis of applicant vetting between January and June 2022 showed no disproportionality in refusals for people who declared a protected characteristic

• Applicants from ethnic minority groups are supported by an extra staff member

• People are monitored if intelligence indicates they pose a higher risk of sexual misconduct

The force received 132 anonymous and confidential reports relating to suspected corruption between January 2020 and November 2022, inspectors said.

They however said: "The force should improve how it collects, assesses, develops, and investigates counter-corruption intelligence by ensuring that its counter-corruption unit has sufficient resources and suitably trained staff to meet demand."

Police forces were recently told to cross reference all staff details with national databases, following the conviction of Met Police officer David Carrick who carried out dozens of rapes and sexual assaults

An Essex Police spokesman said it had "one of the best and most effective vetting units in the UK" and added the "force will continue to take a proactive and robust approach in dealing with allegations of poor conduct".

"We are proud of the fact the overwhelming majority of officers and staff do a difficult job, brilliantly," he said.

Separately, all UK police forces were asked in January to check staff against national databases to identify anyone slipping "through the net" - following the case of Met Police officer David Carrick who admitted dozens of rape and sexual offences.