In its annual report, the Police Complaints Commission said the Professional Standards and Counter Corruption Unit’s location inside the station ‘increases the likelihood of informal approaches, which may blur established reporting routes’.
The PSCCU is the unit within Guernsey Police responsible for managing and investigating complaints against officers below senior rank. The commission praised its work as ‘demanding and sensitive’ and ‘vital’ to public trust, but said its position within the force created tensions. It noted that, because of the size of the organisation, PSCCU officers were at times required to support wider operational policing when pressures demanded it. While understandable, the commission said, this ‘can present challenges in maintaining a clear separation between professional standards functions and day-to-day policing activity’.
The commission said there was ‘merit in exploring alternative accommodation’ for the unit.
‘Relocating the unit would enhance confidentiality, reduce unnecessary operational crossover, and better reflect the importance of maintaining clear and robust professional standards and counter-corruption arrangements,’ it said.
Commission chairman Rob Jordan said, in his foreword to the report: ‘Investigating complaints against fellow officers is complex and often challenging, requiring diligence, integrity and courage.
‘The efforts of the PSCCU continue to play an essential role in maintaining confidence in the complaints system and in upholding the standards expected of the policing profession.’
The watchdog met the island’s new Chief of Police, Damien Kitchen, and senior officers in July 2025, in what it described as a productive discussion of priorities and the importance of a fair and effective complaints system.
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