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27
Jan
Police officer filed safeguarding report on farming family after they reported attempted burglary
North Yorkshire Police has defended a decision by an officer to file a safeguarding report on a family after being called to reports of a burglary at their farm.
Conservative MP for Thirsk and Malton Kevin Hollinrake, who is also the Tory party chairman, wrote to the force after receiving a complaint about the incident from a constituent.
A police officer was called to a report of an attempted burglary at an unnamed farm on November 17 last year.
But while at the home, police say the officer noticed a “strong odour” and that the home appeared unclean, with sticky and dirty surfaces and floors.
The officer decided to submit a public protection notice (PPN) following the visit due to children being in the house, an action which can trigger a multi-agency safeguarding response.
The MP said:
I was contacted by a farming family in my constituency after a highly concerning police visit to their home. The family had reported an attempted burglary after finding evidence of someone trying to access their property late in the evening.
While no suspect was identified and the burglary was not resolved, the police response quickly shifted away from investigating the crime itself.
Instead, the attending officer carried out an intrusive safeguarding check late at night, including entering bedrooms, inspecting the home and submitting a Public Protection Notice regarding the family’s children.
Mr Hollinrake said that based on the circumstances described to him, he did not believe this response was “proportionate or appropriate, particularly given the lack of any evidence of risk to the children involved”.
He added:
I have written to North Yorkshire Police to raise serious concerns about this incident, the justification provided and the broader implications for public confidence in policing.
In the letter, the MP calls for an internal review of the incident, confirmation on what legal basis the checks were carried out and assurances on “appropriate officer training to prevent future such incidents”.
'Our officer did the right thing'
In a response published today (January 27) Catherine Clarke, assistant chief constable for local policing and safeguarding at North Yorkshire Police, confirmed an officer attended a property in response to reports of an attempted burglary.
She said:
The officer followed appropriate lines of enquiry to enable an investigation to follow.
Whilst at the address, the officer became concerned about the living conditions and possible health implications for children living there and, in line with their training, displayed appropriate professional curiosity to explore their concerns.
The officer checked on the children in person as they are trained to do, before submitting a balanced Public Protection Notice explaining their concerns about living conditions and possible health implications, but also stating the children appeared well cared for.
ACC Clarke added:
Any officer submitting a Public Protection Notice would not be aware if children were already known to social care. The Public Protection Notice process exists so that such concerns can be logged and reviewed by those with access to wider information.
Our officer did the right thing in this circumstance and this is an example of the safeguarding system working as intended. The officer correctly identified and documented a possible concern, raising it for our specialist safeguarding team to review.
North Yorkshire Police said the Public Protection Notice was not escalated to other agencies after being reviewed by its vulnerability assessment team.
The force said it had spoken to the family to explain why the officer took this action and had been in contact with the MP to “offer clarification in relation to his comments”.
It also said it would "never apologise for taking a child-centred approach":
We fully appreciate that police officers asking questions about the welfare of children may feel intrusive, however we would never apologise for taking a child-centred approach and for being proactive in ensuring that the wellbeing of children is protected.
All of our officers and the public should be able to raise a welfare concern where appropriate for it to be properly assessed by qualified professionals. We would encourage this to ensure the most vulnerable in society remain protected from harm.
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