An officer will ask you the following questions:
What you are doing?
Where have you been?
Your name? Your address?
Your date of birth?
You do not have to give this information unless you are being detained for an offence.
If you are in a public place, you could be asked to remove your coat, jacket and gloves. The police do have the right to search inside your pockets and inside your bag. An officer may be required to search your headscarf, veil or turban. If so, they must be conducting the search somewhere out of public view. You should not be asked to drop your trousers, remove your shirt or lift your clothes during a stop and search.
Strip Searches
These should only be conducted when the police have reasonable grounds to believe you may be guilty of an offence such as concealing contraband or a weapon.
What may happen when a strip search is conducted:
- Requesting you to remove all articles of clothing or accessories from their physical body;
- Probing (or searching) a person’s body parts, cavities, and creases (like under a flap of skin).
If as a result of a negative stop and search, you would like to make a complaint, we at Spark2Life would like to hear your voice.
We want you to feel empowered that your complaint will be handled with care and compassion.
While looking at body cam footage of your encounter we will be able to see where things could have been handled more correctly (under 18s, will need parental consent for footage to be seen by Spark2Life).
Once the footage has been reviewed by Spark2Life and the local police, we shall ascertain what needs to done to prevent this happening to any other young people.
In England and Wales, Stop and Search is the power given to police to search an individual or vehicle if:
- They have “reasonable grounds” to suspect the person is carrying: illegal drugs, a weapon, stolen property or something which could be used to commit a crime.
- They are looking for someone who matches your description
- They are exercising anti-terrorism efforts
The cannot stop you based on your:
- Age
- Race
- Nationality
- Appearance or what your wearing
- Religion
Body worn videos are used to provide visual evidence to be used at court. Officers are required to turn on body cameras when conducting any stop and search. Always ask for this to be turned on if you are being stop and searched.
This footage is especially important if you would like to make a complaint about a negative encounter.
Can I film the police?
Yes, you can film. The police do not have the right to stop you filming incidents or police personnel.
Fact, the smell of weed or marijuana can in fact insight the grounds of suspicion.
‘The police officer has to be the same sex to be searched me!’Fiction, an officer of any sex can search you, providing that its conducted in a open public area and it is only the outer clothes are being checked.
‘You can’t arresting me for swearing!’Fiction, you can be arrested under the Public Order Act 1986. Using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour can result in an arrest. Please STAY CALM to avoid these situations.
The Advocacy Service began with StreetBase and the YIAG of Waltham Forest (Youth Independent Advisory Group). They conducted a survey and gathered real life testimonies from young people regarding Stop and Search practices and the problems these young people were facing.
The research found that many of the young people surveyed were not aware of their rights surrounding Stop and Search practices and were not aware of the complaints process if they had a negative encounter.
This was how the Advocacy Service began.
Spark2Life were then commissioned by Waltham Forest Council to deliver an Advocacy Service which explains the laws and rights surrounding Stop and Search encounters while also providing a unique complaints system for young people who have had negative experiences during a Stop and Search encounter.
