Complaints up against South Wales Police and North Wales Police

Complaints against two Welsh police forces have gone up, according to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Complaints against South Wales Police rose 15% to 721 in 2013/14, the same as the increase for England and Wales.

North Wales Police saw a rise of 8% to 330, while the Dyfed-Powys force saw a fall in the number of complaints - they were down by 1% to 328.

Gwent Police's complaints remained stable at 311.

However, the number of complaints upheld against Gwent by the IPCC was significantly higher than average.

It comes after Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) criticised the force's "overloaded" and "slow" professional standards department in a report last year.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Winston Roddick said he believes the "great majority of police officers and police staff carry out their duties with great integrity".

He added: "One factor in the rise in complaints is that there is now greater awareness of police and crime commissioners (PCCs) than there was of the old police authorities.

"This has led to an increase in the public's confidence to make complaints and given them the reassurance that the PCCs will oversee the process effectively."