Human Resources - Personal harassment protocol (L1760)

1.0 Summary of changes

Protocol has been updated on the 24 April 2026 with the following:

• section 3.8 - new section added to reflect disclosures linked to sexual harassment constituting a protected disclosure under the whistle-blowing provisions of the Employment Rights Act 1996, as amended by the Employment Rights Act 2025
• section 3.11.3 - updated for the whistle-blowing routes
• numbering updated
• section 4.0 and 9.0 - EIA updated

2.0 What this protocol is about

2.1 This protocol underpins our statutory duty to promote equality across all protected groups and our commitment to extend the spirit of that duty to all members of both organisations. This protocol, therefore, applies to all police staff, police officers, the Special Constabulary and volunteers from the date of application. The principles of this protocol also apply to third parties, e.g., contractors, agencies using either Essex Police or Kent Police premises.

2.2 This protocol and supporting good practice advice has been produced in consultation with the Superintendents Association, the Federation, UNISON and staff networks in both Essex Police and Kent Police.

Compliance with this protocol and any governing policy is mandatory. This protocol is not, nor is it intended to be, contractual.

3.0 Detail the protocol

3.1 Purpose

3.1.1 Both Essex Police and Kent Police recognise that fair treatment of staff is crucial to gaining the confidence of all staff and to ensure that they are engaged and motivated to deliver the highest quality policing service.

3.1.2 It is the aim of both forces to provide a working environment where everybody is treated with dignity and respect. Both Essex Police and Kent Police find all forms of harassment or bullying unacceptable, and our goal is to achieve an employment culture where individuals are confident to challenge any such behaviour, without fear of ridicule or victimisation. Both forces have a duty to prevent harassment in the workplace.

3.1.3 This protocol seeks to encourage employees to raise concerns promptly, to challenge and educate where behaviour may be inappropriate or insensitive and to deal with cases in an informal manner that encourages resolution between all parties wherever possible.

3.1.4 Both Essex Police and Kent Police will treat all complaints of harassment and bullying seriously, promptly and consistently and will give appropriate support to all parties. All complaints will be dealt with in a fair and transparent manner and without fear of reprisals.

3.1.5 Discriminatory behaviour, harassment or bullying are viewed as serious matters and may involve dismissal from the service in cases of gross misconduct.

3.2 Legal obligations

3.2.1 The Equality Act 2010, Worker Protection Amendment, the Health and Safety at Work Etc Act 1974 (section 2), Employment Rights legislation, the Equal Treatment Directive and associated UK discrimination laws provide the legal basis for this protocol.

3.2.2 In more extreme cases, the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, and/or s154 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (intentional harassment) or the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 may provide legal remedies depending on the circumstances.

3.2.3 Individual managers and supervisors may be culpable for either their inappropriate actions or for failure to exercise responsibility in taking remedial action to eliminate inappropriate workplace behaviour.

3.3 Harassment

3.3.1 Harassment is when bullying (see section 3.6 below) or unwanted behaviour is about any of the following “protected characteristics” under the Equality Act:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

3.3.2 Harassment linked to pregnancy would be covered by harassment related to sex.

3.3.3 The Equality Act 2010 defines harassment as unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic which has the purpose or effect of:

• violating the dignity of another person; or
• creating for that person an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment.

3.3.4 Conduct that has one of these effects can be harassment even if the effect was not intended

3.3.5 What does or does not amount to harassment can be a question of degree – a one off joke which the individual affected says they find inappropriate is unlikely to be harassment if there are no further such incidents.

3.3.6 An individual does not have to set out to harass someone for it to have that impact; the key point is whether or not it is reasonable for the affected person to feel that their dignity has been violated or they are being subject to an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment.

3.4 Protected characteristics

3.4.1 The Equality Act 2010 act describes nine protected characteristics, which cannot be used as a reason to treat people unfairly. Every person has one or more of the protected characteristics, so the Act protects everyone against unfair treatment. The protected characteristics are:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

3.4.2 A person does not have to have the protected characteristic themselves but may be subjected to harassment due to their association with someone who does or they may simply be offended because the conduct itself relates to a protected characteristic e.g. general remark about disabled people or Gypsies or Travellers.

3.5 Unwanted conduct

3.5.1 This refers to unwelcome or uninvited, offensive behaviour that fails to respect the rights of others. The word unwanted means unwelcome or uninvited. The affected individual does not have to say that they object to the behaviour for it to be unwanted.

3.5.2 Unwanted conduct covers a wide range of behaviour can be of a sexual nature or spoken or written words of abuse, imagery, graffiti, physical gestures, facial expressions, mimicry, jokes, pranks, and acts affecting a person’s surroundings or other physical behaviour.

3.5.3 It is not possible to produce a definitive list of unacceptable behaviour within the workplace which could constitute harassment but for some examples of unacceptable behaviour please refer to the following link: The Equality Act 2010: harassment in the workplace.

3.6 Bullying at work

3.6.1 Bullying is not specifically defined in law, but ACAS describe bullying as:
“Bullying is behaviour from a person or group that is either:

• offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting
• an abuse or misuse of power that undermines, humiliates, or causes physical or emotional harm to someone

3.6.1.1 Examples of bullying at work could include:

• someone has spread a false rumour about you
• someone keeps putting you down in meetings
• your boss does not let you go on training courses, but they allow everyone else to
• your boss keeps giving you heavier workloads than everyone else
• your team never lets you join social events
• someone at the same or more junior level as you keeps overruling your authority

3.6.1.2 The bullying might:

• be a regular pattern of behaviour or a one-off incident
• happen face-to-face, on social media, in emails or phone calls
• happen at work or at work social events
• not always be obvious or noticed by others

3.6.2 Bullying can also happen from staff towards a more senior employee, a manager or an employer (this can be called 'upward bullying' or 'subordinate bullying'). It can be from one employee or group of employees.

3.6.2.1 Examples of upward bullying can include:

• showing continued disrespect
• refusing to complete tasks
• spreading rumours
• doing things to make you seem unskilled or unable to do your job properly

3.6.2.2 It can be difficult if you’re in a senior role to realise you’re experiencing bullying behaviour from your staff. It’s important to consider the real reasons for the behaviour. For example, there might be a wider issue with the culture of the department or organisation. Employers and managers should work together to identify the cause of the issue and address it.

3.6.3 Bullying can be either overt (obvious) and covert (discreet, subtle). It is not possible to produce a definitive list of unacceptable behaviour within the workplace which could constitute bullying but for some examples of bullying please refer to the following link: The Equality Act 2010: harassment in the workplace.

3.7 Victimisation

3.7.1 Victimisation is a specific act whereby an individual suffers detrimental treatment as a result of having made or supported a complaint, grievance or employment tribunal claim. Victimisation will not be tolerated by either organisation.

3.8 Whistle-blowing protection

Individuals are entitled to raise concerns about sexual harassment through this Protocol. In addition, where a concern is raised in the public interest, such a disclosure may attract statutory whistle-blowing protection under the Employment Rights Act 1996, as amended by the Employment Rights Act 2025.

No individual will be subjected to detriment for raising a concern about sexual harassment, whether under this Protocol or via whistle-blowing routes.

3.9 Expected standards of behaviour

3.9.1 It is the duty of all officers and members of police staff to create a workplace free from harassment and bullying. All officers and staff must be mindful that their attitudes and behaviour have a direct impact on the people they work with.

3.9.2 All police officers and police staff within Essex Police and Kent Police are required to adhere to the agreed standards of professional behaviour. The standards which are of particular relevance to this protocol are authority, respect and courtesy and equality and diversity.

3.10 Responsibilities of managers and supervisors

3.10.1 Managers and supervisors have a particular responsibility to set an example and undertake their management duties fairly and in a manner that treats people with dignity and respect.

3.10.2 All managers and supervisors are responsible and accountable for taking immediate action to stop any harassment or intimidation or stop any behaviour that gives cause for concern. Well-considered and constructive challenges should be part of a manager’s and supervisor’s role and will ensure achievement of higher standards of service delivery and organisational performance. Failure to take appropriate action will be considered a failure to fulfil the responsibilities of the position.

3.10.3 Managers and supervisors are expected to familiarise themselves with guidelines to assist with the management of stress.

3.10.4 Where managers and supervisors are dealing with unfamiliar situations they are encouraged to use the available HR support but ownership of the issue will remain with the manager.

3.11 Resolution process

3.11.1 If you believe you have been subjected to, or have witnessed harassment and/or bullying staff are encouraged to be upstanders and raise concerns. You should not be afraid to object about inappropriate, insensitive or unacceptable behaviour even if this behaviour is not directed at you. All concerns raised will be dealt with sensitively and taken seriously.

3.11.2 Informal resolution is often the most effective method to resolve matters relating to harassment and bullying. Dealing with such matters early and informally, for example by explaining to the individual why their behaviour is inappropriate, insensitive or unacceptable, can mean matters are quickly and sensitively resolved.

3.11.3 In cases where informal resolution is not possible or appropriate the Grievance process should be used to address and resolve these issues. Throughout the grievance process the wishes of the individual raising the grievance will be the prime consideration. However, any form of harassment must be referred to a senior manager or an appropriately qualified HR professional who, in serious cases may refer the matter to the Professional Standards Department with or without the victim’s consent or consider whether whistle-blowing routes are appropriate where the concern is raised in the public interest.

3.11.4 The full grievance resolution protocol is detailed in L1420 Protocol - Grievance.

3.11.5. If the above actions are not suitable or if the behaviour does not cease you have an obligation to tell a supervisor or manager (not necessarily your own supervisor or manager), in order to give the organisation an opportunity to take action.

3.12 Formal capability, disciplinary and police performance and misconduct protocols

3.12.1 Protocols for dealing with alleged criminal or disciplinary offences reported by staff are well established and are as detailed in L 1200 Protocol - Police staff discipline.

3.12.2 Where members of police staff do not perform their duties to the required standard the capability protocol is available as detailed in the joint capability protocol for Essex and Kent.

3.12.3 The Police (Performance) Regulations 2020 and the Conduct Regulations 2020 can be used for misconduct and performance issues involving police officers.

3.13 Advice and support
3.13.1 Any police officer or member of police staff who has a problem at work can gain confidential assistance from a variety of people within each organisation. These include:

Essex Police	Kent Police
Line manager or other manager in whom you have confidence	Line manager or other manager in whom you have confidence
Unison/Federation representative/Superintendents Association	Unison/Federation representative/Superintendents Association
Human Resources	Human Resources
Health Services	Health Services
Essex Police Support Zone	Kent Police support pages
“Fairplay Advisers” network

4.0 Equality Impact Assessment

4.1 The author has assessed this document, and the equality impact is considered high – EIA - April 2026.

5.0 Risk assessment

5.1 A failure to adopt the principles set out in this procedure could have a detrimental effect upon the reputation of the organisation and impact the employment experience of all officers and staff.

5.2 Officers and members of police staff engaged within the process must remain aware that they must follow the protocol correctly otherwise the risk to the organisation of a possible employment tribunal could be raised. A failure to fully adopt the principles set out in this protocol could have a detrimental effect upon the reputation of the organisation.

6.0 Consultation

6.1 The following have been consulted during the formulation of this document:

• Unison / Federation
• HR Partners
• Diversity / Health and Safety

7.0 Monitoring and review

7.1 This protocol will be reviewed every two years by, or on behalf of, the the HR Delivery Manager.

8.0 Governing force policy. Related force policies or related protocols, procedures (Essex)/linked standard operating procedures (Kent)

8.1 This HR protocol supports the overarching HR policy L1.

• L 01420 Protocol – Grievance
• L 01200 Protocol - Police staff discipline
• L 01100 Protocol – Capability - police staff

8.1.1 Essex Policies:

• C 3000 Policy - Professional standards
• C 3006 Procedure - Integrity assurance
• C 3011 Procedure - Professional standards - Use of IT platforms and social media websites
• C 3015 Procedure – Reporting wrongdoing
• B 0100 Policy - Recording of incidents and crimes

8.1.2 Kent Policies

• PO1 Wrongdoing
• P02 Standards of professional behaviour

8.2 Data security

8.2.1 Essex Police and Kent Police have measures in place to protect the security of your data in accordance with our Information Management Policy – W 1000 Policy – Information Management.

8.3 Retention and disposal of records

8.3.1 Essex Police and Kent Police will hold data in accordance with our Records review, retention and disposal policy – W 1012 Procedure/SOP - Records review, retention and disposal.

8.3.2 We will only hold data for as long as necessary for the purposes for which we collected.

9.0 Other source documents, e.g., legislation, APP, force forms, partnership agreements (if applicable)

• The Equality Act 2010: harassment in the workplace
• Standards of professional behaviour – Police officers
• Standards of professional behaviour – Police staff
• EIA – July 2025
• The Police (Performance) Regulations 2008 for misconduct and performance issues involving police officers.