Out of Court Disposal Scrutiny Panel – Annual Report 2014 – 2015

The first Annual Report of the scrutiny panel has now been published.

Julia Mulligan, Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire, set up the Out of Court Disposals Scrutiny Panel to independently scrutinise the use of Out of Court Disposals in response to public concerns about their appropriate use. 

The role of the Panel is to ensure that the use of Out of Court Disposals are:

• appropriate and proportionate,
• consistent with national and local policy, and
• considers the victims’ wishes where appropriate.

The Panel does not review individual decisions but assess their appropriate use, highlight examples of good practice and make recommendations for improvement. The Panel consider performance information, and changes to legislation, policy and practice to support them in their role.

The overarching aim of the Panel is to bring transparency to the use of Out of Court Disposals in order to increase understanding and confidence in their use.