GRIEVANCES against Gwent Police surged by 27 per cent to reach nearly 400 in the last financial year, research by the Independent Police Complaints Commission has revealed.

Complaints increased by six per cent in England and Wales overall, the IPCC said.

Gwent Police said that it welcomed the IPCC findings and stressed that it sought to provide the best possible service to members of the public.

Meanwhile, Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent, Ian Johnston, pledged to discuss the findings with Gwent Police Chief Constable Jeff Farrar.

The statistics showed complaints fell by a record 22 per cent in the West Midlands and soared by a record 66 per cent in Staffordshire.

Grievances against Gwent Police went up from 311 in 13/14 to 398 in 14/15.

But the total number of appeals made by dissatisfied complainants fell by 15 per cent to 70.

The IPCC added that it had upheld 36 per cent of appeals made about Gwent Police complaint investigations.

Gwent Police upheld 18 per cent of its complaints and it took the force 138 day to resolve each grievance on average, an IPCC annual report showed.

A Gwent Police spokesman said: “We welcome the publication of today’s IPCC report.

“Gwent Police always endeavours to provide the best possible service to the public, however we realise that this is not always possible.

“We actively encourage people to contact us if the quality of the service they receive is not of the standard they expect.

"When we do receive a complaint, we record it and attempt to resolve it quickly and efficiently in a professional and impartial way, ensuring that any opportunities for improvement in our service are identified."

Mr Johnston said: “I welcome this independent report which highlights some key lessons, which Gwent Police can learn from.

“I will be discussing the findings in great detail with the Chief Constable to see how we can work together and provide effective solutions to some of the areas highlighted.

“I also welcome plans to streamline and simplify the current system and my team and I are already actively working with the force on specific areas of work which will improve the way we resolve complaints here in Gwent.

“I would encourage anyone who feels they have been treated unfairly to make a complaint and I would like to reassure the people of Gwent that I will continue to monitor the performance of the force in this area to ensure they receive the best quality of service available.”