Request information on Police Dogs

Reference: 25033

Date Added: Thursday, March 5, 2026

Category: Miscellaneous

Disclosure Details

Two duties are placed on public authorities under Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). Notwithstanding applicable exemptions, the first duty at, Section 1(1) (a), is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in a request is held. The second duty at, Section1 (1) (b), is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held. Under the provisions of those sections of the FOIA, we can confirm that the information you seek is not held by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent.

 

You requested the following information

 

  1. How many General-Purpose police dogs are currently licenced
  2. For the last five years how many GP dogs have finished, either retired, failed, PTs or other reason?
  3. How many GP bites have been recorded for the last five years, breaking it down for month/year recorded?
  4. Of these bites was it GP deployment, training, accidental, handler error or other 
  5. Where was the person bitten? 
  6. Injuries sustained for each bite?
  7. How many of these bites were referred to IOPC?
  8. How many of the IOPC referrals resulted in further action?
  9. What Health and Safety protocols were changed because of these bites?
  10. What policies were implemented or changed because of these bites?
  11. How much money has been paid out by Gwent Police for police dog bites for the last five years?
  12. A breakdown of the money paid out for the last five years by month/year for Q9?
  13. How many GP deployments are recorded for each year for the last five years?

 

No information held

 

I wanted to clarify the differences between the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) and Gwent Police and to explain who you need to contact when requesting information. The OPCC and Gwent Police are two separate organisations. The role of the OPCC is to hold the police to account, we are not able to get involved in operational policing matters. Therefore, you may wish to contact Gwent Police directly to request the information using the following https://www.gwent.police.uk/rqo/request/ri/request-information/rip/request-information-police/

 

The Freedom of Information Act is a public disclosure regime, not a private regime. Any information disclosed under the Act is thereafter deemed to be in the public domain, and therefore freely available to the general public and will be published on the OPCC website.

 

You have the right to appeal our decision if you think it is incorrect. Should you feel dissatisfied with this response or the way in which your request was handled, information on the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent FOI Appeals Procedure can be found on our website:

https://www.gwent.pcc.police.uk/en/transparency/know-your-rights/your-information-rights/freedom-of-information/appeals-process/ 

 

If you remain dissatisfied after an internal review decision, you have the right to apply to the Information Commissioner’s Office. The Commissioner is an independent regulator whose details can be found using the following link  https://ico.org.uk/  

 

You can also write to the Information Commissioner’s Office at the following address:

Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF