Checks on Dorset police custody earn national award
The Independent Custody Visiting Scheme has been recognised
A national award has been given to a service in Dorset that carries out checks on the quality and safety of the county's police custody suites.
The Independent Custody Visiting Scheme, overseen by the Police and Crime Commissioner's Office, has been recognised.
Trained volunteers from the local community make regular unannounced visits to police custody suites to check on the rights, entitlements, well-being and dignity of the detainees held there.
Their findings are reported to the Police and Crime Commissioner who holds the Chief Constable to account.
The Independent Custody Visiting Association (ICVA) - the national membership organisation that supports, leads and represents these schemes - has developed a quality assurance framework to assess how well schemes comply with the Code of Practice that governs custody visiting.
The Dorset scheme has been presented with a gold Quality Assurance Award by ICVA.
Police and Crime Commissioner, David Sidwick said:
“I am delighted to see the Dorset Independent Custody Visiting Scheme receive this gold award for providing an excellent standard of custody visiting. I would like to thank all our volunteers for their hard work and dedication. Independent Custody Visiting plays a vital role in holding the Force to account and ensuring all receive fair treatment from the police.”