The Institute of Licensing will be providing  two Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) Investigators courses in Northern Ireland in early October 2010.

The course is aimed at officers who have a duty to investigate, (Planners, EHOs, TSOs & Licensing Officers etc) and Solicitors who have a responsibility for ensuring the PACE legislation is complied with during the course of an investigation and interview.

The courses will be held at Antrim on 6^th  October and Dungannon on the 7^th  October 2010.  Full details and the online booking facility can be found on the right hand column of the regional pages.

Topics covered on the course include the following:

• What is PACE and who it affects.
• How to record details in a pocket notebook.
• What is evidence?
• Admissibility of evidence.
• What is hearsay, opinion, expert, real & documentary evidence?
• What are exhibits? And how to introduce exhibits.
• The “chain of evidence”.
• How to write a witness statement.
• How to take a witness statement.
• When to caution.
• How to take a written statement after caution.
• How to conduct a contemporaneous notes interview. PACE interview rules and procedures.
• The points to prove.
• Types of defence/ due diligence/ mitigating circumstances.
• How to plan a PACE interview.
• How to conduct a taped interview in accordance with PACE.
• The roles of all parties in a PACE taped interview.
• What to do in a “no comment” interview.
• When to cease an interview.
• What should be said at the end of the interview?

THERE ARE LIMITED PLACES AVAILABLE ON THE COURSES SO BOOK EARLY TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT

One day Investigators PACE Course.

The Investigators PACE course is aimed at anyone who has a duty to investigate and for solicitors who need to understand the rules of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act when conducting interviews under caution.

The one day course has been designed so that it suitable for those with little or no experience of interviewing or those with more experience that require a refresher. The training is a combination of theory training followed by practical hands on training using PACE tape recorders. In addition to interview training delegates will be advised on how to write witness statements and how to take a witness statement. This really is a complete investigators course as delegates will also be taught best practice relating to pocket notebooks, the storage and chain of evidence requirements.

The cost of the course only £75 + Vat for IoL members £95 + Vat for non members. The fee includes delegate handouts, including the tips and tricks of interviewing and lunch and refreshments on the day.

 COMMENTS FROM A PREVIOUS PACE COURSE

“Putting what we learnt in the morning into practice by means of role play later in the day really made everyone have to focus on the detail of what we had covered on the course. You certainly learn from mistakes made here and make sure you don't make them again in the future. I thought it was one of the most useful courses I'd ever been on and that's saying something as I've been to many since qualifying 26 years ago!”

Sandra Graham Solicitor Horsey Lightly Fynn

“The practical use of the tape machines, the interview planning and everything else was very useful, it was much better than I expected.”

Stephen Edwardson

“The course provided excellent overall knowledge and increased my confidence in interviewing.”

Denise Smith

“A very enjoyable course, well presented, the course included some excellent information and the role play helped me to learn the subject and remember the subject.”

Anonymous