Health & Safety Executive/Local Authorities Enforcement Liaison Committee (HELA)

To: Directors of Environmental Health/Chief Environmental Health Officers of London, Metropolitan, District and Unitary Authorities and Chief Executives of County Councils.

For the attention of: Environmental Services /Trading Standards /Fire Authorities /Other

This circular gives advice to local authority enforcement officers

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Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (CRFP)

The attached operational circular (OM 2003/107) is equally relevant to both HSE/LA enforcement officers.

Health and Safety Executive		Operational Minute
		OM 2003/107
Cancellation Date	13/08/2008	Open Government Status	Fully Open
Version No & Date	1: 13/08/2003	Author Unit/Section	FOD FSU

Target Audience:
All HSE Inspectors

Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (CRFP)

This OM gives guidance on what you should do if you are asked if you are registered with the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (CRFP). It is of particular importance and relevance to Specialist Inspectors, and other HSE staff, who are giving expert witness testimony

Introduction

1 Sometime ago an HSE Inspector when giving expert witness evidence was asked by a Judge if he was registered with the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (CRFP). The purpose of this OM is to give guidance to Inspectors should they find themselves in this position. (General guidance on expert evidence is in the HSE Enforcement Handbook, which is shortly to be updated and replaced as the Enforcement Guide).

Background

2 In the 1980s several high profile criminal convictions were quashed on appeal as a result of doubts over the veracity of the forensic evidence. In order to establish the credentials and credibility of forensic practitioners the CRFP has been established with initial funding from the Home Office. This allows for the qualifications and expertise of registrants to be examined at regular intervals. The implication is that registrants' evidence will carry more weight than those experts who are not so registered. The process is voluntary, for it is recognised that there will always be some experts who are required to give evidence so rarely that registration is not possible.

Registration covers experts in the following technical groups:

• Toxicology
• Particulates
• Drugs
• Firearms
• Human Contact Traces
• Marks
• Incident Reconstruction
• Questioned Documents

The CRFP is expected to extend these groupings in due course.

3 HSE has been keeping these developments under review. At a recent meeting between the Chief Executive of the CRFP and HSE officials, the role of HSE Inspectors was explained: HSE's policy is to work with defence on the facts, and in many cases the technical evidence is not in dispute; appearances in court as an expert witness is a rare event for any individual Inspector. It was agreed that it was not appropriate to register HSE Inspectors, but as the CRFP develops HSE will keep its position under review.

Guidance to inspectors

4 These findings were discussed at the Operations Management Forum (OMF) on 4/5 April 2002 and it was agreed that the following policy should be adopted.

5 If HSE Inspectors are asked in Court about Registration they should reply as follows:

HSE is in regular discussion with the Chief Executive of the CRFP about Registration of HSE Inspectors, and, in consultation with him, it has been decided that registration of HSE Inspectors is not yet appropriate bearing in mind the stage of development of the CRFP and the role of HSE Inspectors. This position is subject to periodic review. Furthermore, all HSE Inspectors have been through extensive professional training and development, and continue to update their expertise throughout their careers