Assessment of performance or attendance following third stage meeting
46.—(1) This regulation applies where a final written improvement notice has been issued or extended under regulation 44.
(2) Where this regulation applies, as soon as reasonably practicable after the reasonable period specified by the panel under regulation 44(7)(c) or (8)(a) ends—
(a)the panel shall assess the performance or attendance of the officer concerned (as the case may be) during that period; and
(b)the panel chair shall notify the officer concerned in writing whether the panel considers that there has been a sufficient improvement in performance or attendance during that period.
(3) If the panel considers that there has not been a sufficient improvement, the panel chair shall, at the same time as he gives notification under paragraph (2)(b), also notify the officer concerned in writing that he is required to attend another third stage meeting to consider his performance or attendance.
(4) Where—
(a)the officer concerned has not been required to attend a third stage meeting under paragraph (3), or
(b)the officer concerned has been required to attend a third stage meeting under paragraph (3) but the panel did not make a finding of unsatisfactory performance or attendance at that meeting,
the officer concerned may be required to attend a third stage meeting under paragraph (5).
(5) If the panel considers that the officer concerned has failed to maintain a sufficient improvement in his performance or attendance during any part of the validity period of the final written improvement notice remaining after the expiry of the period specified in accordance with regulation 44(7)(c) or (8)(a), the panel chair shall notify the officer concerned in writing of the matters set out in paragraph (6).
(6) Those matters are—
(a)that the panel is of the view mentioned in paragraph (5); and
(b)that the officer concerned is required to attend another third stage meeting to consider his performance or attendance.
(7) In a case falling within paragraph (3) or (5), the appropriate authority shall give the officer concerned the notice referred to in regulation 29.
(8) Where the officer concerned is required to attend a third stage meeting under this regulation, these Regulations shall have effect as if the case fell within regulation 28(2) or (4) as the case may be and—
(a)references to the period specified in accordance with regulation 23(6)(c) shall be construed as references to the period specified under regulation 44(7)(c) or (8)(a), as the case may be; and
(b)references to the validity period of the final written improvement notice shall be construed as references to the validity period mentioned in regulation 44(7)(d) or (8)(c), as the case may be.
(9) Any third stage meeting which a police officer is required to attend under this regulation must concern unsatisfactory performance or attendance which is similar to or connected with the unsatisfactory performance or attendance referred to in the final written improvement notice issued or extended under regulation 44.
(10) References in this regulation to the panel are references to the panel that conducted the initial third stage meeting, subject to paragraph (11).
(11) Where any of the panel members are not able to continue to act as such, the appropriate authority shall remove that member from the panel and shall appoint a new member to the panel.
(12) If the appropriate authority appoints a new panel member under paragraph (11), it must ensure that the requirements for the composition of the panel in regulation 32 continue to be met.
(13) As soon as reasonably practicable after any such appointment, the appropriate authority shall notify in writing the officer concerned of the name of the new panel member.
(14) The officer concerned may object to the appointment of a panel member appointed under paragraph (11).
(15) Any such objection must be made in accordance with regulation 33(2), provided that it must be made before the end of 3 working days beginning with the first working day after receipt of the notification referred to in paragraph (13); and the appropriate authority shall comply with regulation 33(3) to (6) in relation to the objection but paragraph (7) of that regulation shall not apply.