A BARNSLEY police officer who accessed police systems without a purpose before disclosing the information to his partner has been dismissed without notice.
The officer - who has been labelled as PC A - faced a misconduct panel over a breach of standards.
It was alleged that on August 31, 2025, the officer accessed police systems, requested a colleague checked the systems and then disclosed information to his partner.
The report states that PC A had searched his girlfriend’s ex-partner to see if he was still in custody and then subsequently revealed the information.
PC A admitted the breaches and accepted that they individually and cumulatively amount to gross misconduct.
A report states: “Not only did PC A access systems without a proper policing purpose he also disclosed the information he had obtained to his partner.
“In addition to checking systems he had access to, PC A also caused another officer to check a system he did not have access to.
“He failed to tell the other officer there was any connection between him and the male being checked, even when it was clear, or should have been clear to him, that there was.
“Turning to consider harm, the conduct of PC A has the potential to seriously undermine and harm the public’s confidence in the police.
“Officers are expected to abide by the standards of professional behaviour, and with policy and practice.
“Officers are expected to not abuse their position.
“There is public concern around this type of misconduct both at scale and at depth, the public rightly expect officers to only access systems for a proper policing purpose and they certainly do not expect information held about them to be shared with someone who has no right in law for the information to be disclosed to them.
“This conduct has the potential to cause very serious harm to public confidence in the police.”
The PC was dismissed without notice.
Laura Poultney, chair of the misconduct panel, said: “I bear in mind that the misconduct of a single officer can tarnish the reputation of a force and the service as a whole and undermine the trust and confidence that members of the public have in South Yorkshire Police, and I bear in mind that should the public feel that improper behaviour on the part of police officers is left unchecked and they are not held accountable for it in a suitable manner, then public confidence in the police, and South Yorkshire Police in particular, will be eroded.
“In my judgement the proven misconduct of PC A demonstrates a serious failure to adhere to the standards of behaviour which the public expect serving police officers to maintain, whether on or off duty, and his behaviour would seriously undermine public confidence in the police.
“Having assessed the misconduct here as serious misconduct, recognising that PC A demonstrated a serious failure in adherence to the standards of professional behaviour, and his misconduct has the potential to cause serious damage to the public confidence in the police, in my judgement the only appropriate outcome is dismissal without notice.
“No lesser alternative adequately protects public confidence in the police service, upholds standards in policing and protects the public.”
