Terms of reference

The Authority’s inquiry will focus on the manner in which child abuse cases are received, prioritised and investigated by Police, and the efficacy of Police practices, policies and procedures, both past and present.

Specific matters to be considered include the adequacy of:

• guidelines and controls for receiving, prioritizing and investigating child abuse cases
• communication of those guidelines and controls
• resourcing for child abuse investigations
• specialist training
• processes for selecting staff
• sharing of knowledge among child abuse teams
• the timeliness of the Police response to child abuse cases
• attitudes to child abuse investigations
• compliance at District levels with national policies, and
• compliance with international obligations on the protection of children.

The inquiry will also consider the relationship between Police and other agencies, in particular the Ministry of Social Development and Child, Youth and Family.

 

Terms of Reference, Part II:

1.1 The Independent Police Conduct Authority (“the Authority”) is conducting an inquiry into practices, policies and procedures of the New Zealand Police (“Police”) in relation to child abuse investigations in New Zealand.

1.2 The Authority’s inquiry is in two parts.  The first part of the Authority’s inquiry, reported on in May 2010, addressed systemic issues relevant to Police investigations of child abuse generally.  The second part of the Authority’s inquiry will address:

(a) The delays in the investigation of child abuse files in the Wairarapa which resulted in the Police operation known as Operation Hope.

(b) The reasons why no significant action was taken to address the backlog of child abuse investigation files in the Wairarapa until Operation Hope began in late 2008, given the identification of a backlog of such files by some staff in 2006.

(c) The response of Police National Headquarters (“PNHQ”) to information and publicity in 2006 about delays in the investigation of child abuse files as a result of the backlog identified in the Wairarapa.

(d) The performance of each Police District in relation to child abuse investigations.

(e) Any significant service failures in relation to child abuse investigations identified within particular Police Districts and the response by those Districts to ensure such service failures are not repeated in the future.

(f) The response of each Police District to the Authority’s recommendations in Part One of its inquiry and any other relevant changes in each Police District to practices, policies and procedures relating to child abuse investigations.

(g) The response of PNHQ to the Authority’s recommendations in Part One of its inquiry and any other relevant changes in PNHQ to practices, policies and procedures relating to child abuse investigations.