Evidence to gather before you reply to a police force

24 things to have in front of you, in five groups. Each item has four parts: what it is, why it matters, where to look and what to do if you cannot get it. Nothing here is required before you run the assessment or send the letter. The checklist is there to make your reply stronger, and "we asked and were not given it" is itself evidence.

This page lists every item and where to find it. The full checklist adds why each item matters and what to do if you cannot get it, as a saveable page and a PDF, and is free with an access code once your application is approved.

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1. The Airwave radio and its licence

These six items are about the radio itself: who owns it, who licensed it, what it is set to receive and the sharer status that lets you use it at all. They matter because the police force's demand rests on what the radio gives your staff access to.

1.1Who owns the Airwave radio, confirmed in writing
What it is.
A statement of whether the radio in your control room belongs to the police force, to your council or company or to someone else such as a supplier.
Where to look.
The paperwork that came with the radio, the contract or agreement under which it was supplied or the person who issued it. If nothing is written down, the police force's Airwave lead can confirm it.
1.2TEA2 status and licence
What it is.
TEA2 stands for TETRA Encryption Algorithm 2. TETRA is the digital radio standard the Airwave network runs on. An organisation needs an Ofcom-approved TEA2 licence to use an Airwave radio. Some councils hold their own licence as an approved sharer; others use the radio under the police force's licence. Where a contractor runs the control room, the contractor's staff need a TEA2 licence to handle the radios but the sharer status stays with the council.
Where to look.
Your council or company's Airwave paperwork, the person who arranged the radio or Ofcom's records if your organisation applied itself.
1.3How the radio is supplied to you
What it is.
The contract, loan agreement or letter under which the police force or a supplier gave you the radio. Sometimes there is nothing in writing at all.
Where to look.
Your contracts register, the CCTV manager's files or the council's legal or procurement team. For a contracted service, the client council will usually hold it.
1.4The radio's identity numbers and encryption key category
What it is.
Every Airwave radio has an identity number, called an ISSI, which is printed on or held with the handset. The encryption key category is a setting chosen by the police force that decides what the radio is allowed to receive. The police force may say both must be stored at a particular security marking.
Where to look.
The radio's paperwork, the label on the handset, the person who issued it or the police force's Airwave lead.
1.5The talk groups your radio receives
What it is.
A talk group is a radio channel. Your radio will be set to receive one or more of them, and the police force chooses which.
Where to look.
Your operators will know what they hear day to day. The police force's Airwave lead can confirm the list.
1.6Airwave sharer status and the paperwork behind it
What it is.
Nobody outside the emergency services can use Airwave without being an approved sharer. Sharer status is not one document but four things: Ofcom's letter placing your organisation on the Airwave sharers list (Ofcom publishes the list and takes applications in a fixed window each year, supported by a chief officer of the police force); a TEA2 user sub-licence from the Home Office Airwave Accreditation Secretariat; a non-disclosure agreement with the police force; and the police force's own conditions of use, which limit sharing to talk groups protected by the common cipher key. Sharer status belongs to the council, not to a contractor running the room.
Where to look.
Whoever applied for sharer status in the year the council joined, often the emergency planning or community safety team; the council's Airwave file; Ofcom's published sharers list, which shows whether your organisation is named; the police force's Airwave lead for the non-disclosure agreement and the conditions of use.

2. What the police force has said in writing

These two items are the heart of the matter. The demand for a higher vetting level rests on a decision and a risk assessment, and you are entitled to see both.

2.1The police force's decision that the radio is a police computer system, and who made it
What it is.
A written statement from the police force saying whether it treats the Airwave radio as a police computer system, and naming the person or role who decided that.
Where to look.
The police force's letter to you, if it says so. If it does not, the letter this toolkit produces asks the question directly.
2.2The police force's risk assessment behind the demand
What it is.
Paragraph 5.6.7 of the Vetting Authorised Professional Practice (May 2025) expects a police force to decide the vetting level for each role case by case, and paragraph 3.5.2 of the Vetting Authorised Professional Practice requires its force vetting manager to record a full decision rationale detailing the risks identified and the factors assessed. This item is that recorded rationale and risk assessment, or a written summary of it if the full record cannot be released.
Where to look.
Only the police force holds it. Ask its Force Vetting Manager or the person who signed your letter.

3. Your existing agreements with the police force

You may already have documents that settle what the police force is now asking about. These three are the usual ones. Many services have none of them, and that is worth knowing too.

3.1Information-sharing agreement
What it is.
A signed document between your organisation and the police force setting out what information passes between you, for what purpose and under what safeguards. Sometimes called an ISA or a data-sharing agreement.
Where to look.
The CCTV manager's files, the council's data protection officer, the legal team or the police force's information management unit.
3.2Memorandum of understanding
What it is.
A signed statement of how your service and the police force work together: who does what, who contacts whom and on what terms. Sometimes called an MoU, a joint protocol or a joint code of practice.
Where to look.
The CCTV manager's files, the community safety team, the council's legal team or the police force's local policing commander's office.
3.3Service level agreement
What it is.
A document saying what the police force has asked your control room to do for it: hours of monitoring, response to incidents, evidence handling and so on. Sometimes part of a wider contract or partnership agreement.
Where to look.
Contracts register, the CCTV manager's files, the council's community safety partnership or for a contracted service the client council.

4. Your staff and their clearances

These items turn the demand into numbers: who is affected, what clearance they hold and what the gap costs. You hold all of this yourself.

4.1Every affected role listed
What it is.
A list of every role that can hear or see Airwave traffic, not only operators. Supervisors, cleaners, engineers, IT contractors, auditors, elected members and visitors are the usual ones.
Where to look.
Your staffing list and rota, your visitor book, and your maintenance and cleaning contracts.
4.2Current clearances and expiry dates checked against the police force's records
What it is.
For each member of staff, the vetting level they hold and when it runs out, compared with what the police force's vetting unit has on file.
Where to look.
Your HR files or personnel records, the certificates issued to staff, and the police force's vetting unit, which will confirm status on request.
4.3Number of staff who can hear Airwave traffic against the number who hold the required clearance
What it is.
Two counts: everyone who can hear the radio, and everyone among them who already holds the level the police force is asking for.
Where to look.
Your staffing list and the clearance records from the item above.
4.4Pending applications and delays, with dates
What it is.
A note of every vetting application you have submitted, when it went in and how long it has been waiting.
Where to look.
Your HR files, emails to the police force's vetting unit, and the vetting unit itself, which can confirm receipt dates.
4.5Every extension confirmed in writing
What it is.
Where the police force has allowed a member of staff to keep working while a lapsed or pending clearance is sorted out, the email or letter that says so.
Where to look.
Emails between your managers and the police force's vetting unit or the Force Vetting Manager.
4.6Employment contracts and consultation duties reviewed
What it is.
A check of what your staff contracts say about vetting, and of your duty to consult staff and unions if clearance becomes a condition of the job.
Where to look.
Your HR team, the standard contract for control room staff, and any recognition agreement with a union.

5. Your control room and your own duties

The last items are about the building, the people who come and go, and the decisions that are yours to make whatever the police force says.

5.1Cleaning arrangements documented
What it is.
Who cleans the control room, when, and whether they are ever in the room while the radio is live.
Where to look.
Your facilities team or the cleaning contract.
5.2Routine and emergency engineering arrangements documented
What it is.
Who maintains the CCTV and radio equipment, how they get in, and what happens when something fails out of hours.
Where to look.
Your maintenance contracts and the engineer's call-out procedure.
5.3Out-of-hours engineer process tested
What it is.
Evidence that the emergency call-out process has actually been used or rehearsed, and what happened.
Where to look.
Your fault log or incident records.
5.4Cost of vetting delay to the service worked out
What it is.
What waiting for clearances has cost or will cost: shifts lost, posts held open, overtime or agency cover bought in and monitoring hours not delivered.
Where to look.
Your rota, overtime records, agency invoices and vacancy list.
5.5Data protection and equality impact considered
What it is.
A note of whether requiring higher vetting changes how you handle staff data (a Data Protection Impact Assessment or DPIA) and whether it could affect some groups of staff more than others (an equality impact assessment).
Where to look.
Your data protection officer and your HR or equalities lead.
5.6What losing Airwave would mean, assessed
What it is.
A short statement of what your service could and could not do if the police force withdrew the radio.
Where to look.
Your own operational judgement, your incident logs showing how often the radio is used, and the service level agreement if you have one.
5.7Decision owner and review date recorded
What it is.
The name of the person in your organisation who owns the decision on how to respond, and the date on which the position will be looked at again.
Where to look.
This one you create rather than find.

The full checklist

For each of the 24 items above, the full checklist also says why the item matters to your reply and what to do if you cannot get it: what to record, what to ask the police force for and when a refusal becomes evidence in itself. You can work through it on screen, save your progress, sign it off and download it as a PDF. It is free with an access code, which CCTV User Group members and approved applicants receive by email.

Apply for access

Evidence to gather before you reply to a police force

Apply for access

1. The Airwave radio and its licence

1.1Who owns the Airwave radio, confirmed in writing
What it is.
A statement of whether the radio in your control room belongs to the police force, to your council or company or to someone else such as a supplier.
Where to look.
The paperwork that came with the radio, the contract or agreement under which it was supplied or the person who issued it. If nothing is written down, the police force's Airwave lead can confirm it.
1.2TEA2 status and licence
What it is.
TEA2 stands for TETRA Encryption Algorithm 2. TETRA is the digital radio standard the Airwave network runs on. An organisation needs an Ofcom-approved TEA2 licence to use an Airwave radio. Some councils hold their own licence as an approved sharer; others use the radio under the police force's licence. Where a contractor runs the control room, the contractor's staff need a TEA2 licence to handle the radios but the sharer status stays with the council.
Where to look.
Your council or company's Airwave paperwork, the person who arranged the radio or Ofcom's records if your organisation applied itself.
1.3How the radio is supplied to you
What it is.
The contract, loan agreement or letter under which the police force or a supplier gave you the radio. Sometimes there is nothing in writing at all.
Where to look.
Your contracts register, the CCTV manager's files or the council's legal or procurement team. For a contracted service, the client council will usually hold it.
1.4The radio's identity numbers and encryption key category
What it is.
Every Airwave radio has an identity number, called an ISSI, which is printed on or held with the handset. The encryption key category is a setting chosen by the police force that decides what the radio is allowed to receive. The police force may say both must be stored at a particular security marking.
Where to look.
The radio's paperwork, the label on the handset, the person who issued it or the police force's Airwave lead.
1.5The talk groups your radio receives
What it is.
A talk group is a radio channel. Your radio will be set to receive one or more of them, and the police force chooses which.
Where to look.
Your operators will know what they hear day to day. The police force's Airwave lead can confirm the list.
1.6Airwave sharer status and the paperwork behind it
What it is.
Nobody outside the emergency services can use Airwave without being an approved sharer. Sharer status is not one document but four things: Ofcom's letter placing your organisation on the Airwave sharers list (Ofcom publishes the list and takes applications in a fixed window each year, supported by a chief officer of the police force); a TEA2 user sub-licence from the Home Office Airwave Accreditation Secretariat; a non-disclosure agreement with the police force; and the police force's own conditions of use, which limit sharing to talk groups protected by the common cipher key. Sharer status belongs to the council, not to a contractor running the room.
Where to look.
Whoever applied for sharer status in the year the council joined, often the emergency planning or community safety team; the council's Airwave file; Ofcom's published sharers list, which shows whether your organisation is named; the police force's Airwave lead for the non-disclosure agreement and the conditions of use.

2. What the police force has said in writing

These two items are the heart of the matter. The demand for a higher vetting level rests on a decision and a risk assessment, and you are entitled to see both.

2.1The police force's decision that the radio is a police computer system, and who made it
What it is.
A written statement from the police force saying whether it treats the Airwave radio as a police computer system, and naming the person or role who decided that.
Where to look.
The police force's letter to you, if it says so. If it does not, the letter this toolkit produces asks the question directly.
2.2The police force's risk assessment behind the demand
What it is.
Paragraph 5.6.7 of the Vetting Authorised Professional Practice (May 2025) expects a police force to decide the vetting level for each role case by case, and paragraph 3.5.2 of the Vetting Authorised Professional Practice requires its force vetting manager to record a full decision rationale detailing the risks identified and the factors assessed. This item is that recorded rationale and risk assessment, or a written summary of it if the full record cannot be released.
Where to look.
Only the police force holds it. Ask its Force Vetting Manager or the person who signed your letter.

3. Your existing agreements with the police force

You may already have documents that settle what the police force is now asking about. These three are the usual ones. Many services have none of them, and that is worth knowing too.

3.1Information-sharing agreement
What it is.
A signed document between your organisation and the police force setting out what information passes between you, for what purpose and under what safeguards. Sometimes called an ISA or a data-sharing agreement.
Where to look.
The CCTV manager's files, the council's data protection officer, the legal team or the police force's information management unit.
3.2Memorandum of understanding
What it is.
A signed statement of how your service and the police force work together: who does what, who contacts whom and on what terms. Sometimes called an MoU, a joint protocol or a joint code of practice.
Where to look.
The CCTV manager's files, the community safety team, the council's legal team or the police force's local policing commander's office.
3.3Service level agreement
What it is.
A document saying what the police force has asked your control room to do for it: hours of monitoring, response to incidents, evidence handling and so on. Sometimes part of a wider contract or partnership agreement.
Where to look.
Contracts register, the CCTV manager's files, the council's community safety partnership or for a contracted service the client council.

4. Your staff and their clearances

These items turn the demand into numbers: who is affected, what clearance they hold and what the gap costs. You hold all of this yourself.

4.1Every affected role listed
What it is.
A list of every role that can hear or see Airwave traffic, not only operators. Supervisors, cleaners, engineers, IT contractors, auditors, elected members and visitors are the usual ones.
Where to look.
Your staffing list and rota, your visitor book, and your maintenance and cleaning contracts.
4.2Current clearances and expiry dates checked against the police force's records
What it is.
For each member of staff, the vetting level they hold and when it runs out, compared with what the police force's vetting unit has on file.
Where to look.
Your HR files or personnel records, the certificates issued to staff, and the police force's vetting unit, which will confirm status on request.
4.3Number of staff who can hear Airwave traffic against the number who hold the required clearance
What it is.
Two counts: everyone who can hear the radio, and everyone among them who already holds the level the police force is asking for.
Where to look.
Your staffing list and the clearance records from the item above.
4.4Pending applications and delays, with dates
What it is.
A note of every vetting application you have submitted, when it went in and how long it has been waiting.
Where to look.
Your HR files, emails to the police force's vetting unit, and the vetting unit itself, which can confirm receipt dates.
4.5Every extension confirmed in writing
What it is.
Where the police force has allowed a member of staff to keep working while a lapsed or pending clearance is sorted out, the email or letter that says so.
Where to look.
Emails between your managers and the police force's vetting unit or the Force Vetting Manager.
4.6Employment contracts and consultation duties reviewed
What it is.
A check of what your staff contracts say about vetting, and of your duty to consult staff and unions if clearance becomes a condition of the job.
Where to look.
Your HR team, the standard contract for control room staff, and any recognition agreement with a union.

5. Your control room and your own duties

The last items are about the building, the people who come and go, and the decisions that are yours to make whatever the police force says.

5.1Cleaning arrangements documented
What it is.
Who cleans the control room, when, and whether they are ever in the room while the radio is live.
Where to look.
Your facilities team or the cleaning contract.
5.2Routine and emergency engineering arrangements documented
What it is.
Who maintains the CCTV and radio equipment, how they get in, and what happens when something fails out of hours.
Where to look.
Your maintenance contracts and the engineer's call-out procedure.
5.3Out-of-hours engineer process tested
What it is.
Evidence that the emergency call-out process has actually been used or rehearsed, and what happened.
Where to look.
Your fault log or incident records.
5.4Cost of vetting delay to the service worked out
What it is.
What waiting for clearances has cost or will cost: shifts lost, posts held open, overtime or agency cover bought in and monitoring hours not delivered.
Where to look.
Your rota, overtime records, agency invoices and vacancy list.
5.5Data protection and equality impact considered
What it is.
A note of whether requiring higher vetting changes how you handle staff data (a Data Protection Impact Assessment or DPIA) and whether it could affect some groups of staff more than others (an equality impact assessment).
Where to look.
Your data protection officer and your HR or equalities lead.
5.6What losing Airwave would mean, assessed
What it is.
A short statement of what your service could and could not do if the police force withdrew the radio.
Where to look.
Your own operational judgement, your incident logs showing how often the radio is used, and the service level agreement if you have one.
5.7Decision owner and review date recorded
What it is.
The name of the person in your organisation who owns the decision on how to respond, and the date on which the position will be looked at again.
Where to look.
This one you create rather than find.

The full checklist

Apply for access