Community scrutiny panels

Derbyshire Constabulary has an established Community Scrutiny Panel, the Independent Advisory Group (IAG), which is made up of members of the public. The panel are invited to review and provide feedback on randomly selected incidents involving policing tactics which include stop and search, use of force by officers and taser deployments.

Through engagement with our communities and external scrutiny of how Derbyshire Constabulary delivers its services, we seek to increase public understanding, confidence and trust in our policing.

In order for the panel members to appreciate and understand how police use force, stop and search and deploy taser, they are given access to Body Worn Video (BWV) footage recorded by police officers.

The Community Scrutiny Panel will be chaired by one of its independent members. A policing representative will also be present during the panel meetings to offer some background to each of the cases under review and provide some advice to the panel where required around legalities.

Derbyshire Constabulary listen to the feedback members give, which in turn can be used by police supervisors to improve the practice of the individual officer(s) featured and to address any learning where required.

Members who participate in scrutiny panel meetings must hold Non-Police Personnel Vetting (NPPV) Level 2 full clearance. A decision was made in 2025 to reintroduce the vetting requirement for this role following the update to national vetting authorised professional practice.

The force’s Hate Crime Team hold ad hoc Hate Crime Scrutiny panel meetings with the IAG to review the support offered to victims of Hate Crime, and internal processes relating to investigations of Hate Crime.

If you are interested in becoming part of the community scrutiny panel please visit our page to register your interest.