sussex.police.uk

A policing whitewash

Title: Sussex Police complaints: investigated, whitewashed — then rerouted back to the same unit. A closed loop.Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ (1 star)Review:My experience with Sussex Police shows a complaint system that protects itself rather than the public. • In April 2024 I lodged a formal complaint. It was first investigated by Professional Standards (the force’s internal unit). They rejected it — in my view, a whitewash that failed to answer basic questions or grapple with the evidence. • After that outcome, I escalated to Chief Constable Jo Shiner. Instead of leadership and independent scrutiny, her office repeatedly routed my escalation straight back to Professional Standards — the very unit whose handling I was challenging. This happened every time I approached her. No direct engagement. No accountability. Just the same loop.Separately, when I pursued compensation: • My case was passed to the Civil Claims Unit earlier this year. • Around June 2025 they demanded exhaustive personal financial evidence (bank statements, credit-card receipts, supporting notes). • I supplied everything in July 2025. • They then ran the full 90-day clock and, on 1 October 2025, issued another blanket rejection: “Sussex Police not at fault.”The pattern is unmistakable: 1. Professional Standards investigated first and whitewashed my original complaint. 2. When I escalated, the Chief Constable’s office sent it right back to Professional Standards — the same unit under challenge. 3. The Civil Claims Unit put me through an onerous evidence exercise only to reject me after the 90-day period expired.This is not oversight; it is a closed loop. The accused investigates itself. Senior leadership deflects responsibility. The complainant is drained by admin demands and time limits, then told there’s “no fault.”I am sickened by this process. After more than a year of correspondence, months of compiling documents, and multiple escalations to the very top, I have encountered only deflection, delay, and denial. Under Chief Constable Jo Shiner, Sussex Police shows more interest in protecting its image than in answering legitimate public grievances.This is not policing by consent — it’s policing by deflection. The inevitable result is lost public trust. If this is how a determined complainant is treated, how many others are quietly worn down and give up?Conclusion: Sussex Police’s complaints and claims handling is a self-protecting circle. It begins with Professional Standards and, even after escalation to the Chief Constable, ends back with Professional Standards. The Civil Claims track adds paperwork and delay, not accountability. The public deserves far better.

Date of experience: Oct 02, 2025