PFD report

Richard Haddock · Prevention of Future Deaths report

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Issued 16 Dec 2025•Devon, Plymouth and Torbay

Report record

Published report and response evidence

This page connects the concerns raised in this report with statements found in recipients’ published responses. A link shows a clear evidence connection; it does not assign responsibility.

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Concerns
2

Raised in this report

Recipients
1

Named on the report

Responses found
1

Of 1 recipient

Stated actions
9

Described in responses

Recipients and published responses

Source document

Full report text

This is the full text from the original published report.

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Concerns and recipient responses

Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.

Concerns raised2

  1. Failure of the Firearms Licensing Department to check the PNC record
    Part of recurring concern: Unreliable firearms licensing decisionsPart of recurring concern: Unreliable recording and retrieval of safety-critical risk information on the PNC
  2. Failure of the police process to notify the Firearms Licensing Department of the Environment Agency’s prosecution
    Part of recurring concern: Unreliable firearms licensing risk assessment and information sharing
Responses linked to these concerns

Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.

Actions described in response An action is something a recipient says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to a concern raised.5

  1. Action

    Automatically redirect firearms-related Daily Activity File reports to the Continuous Assessment Team inbox for ongoing suitability review.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.
  2. Action

    Check the PNC and other databases during initial suitability-review enquiries.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.
  3. Action

    Allocate additional police personnel to the Firearms Licensing and Explosives Unit to increase review capacity.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.

Source evidence

How this individual concern was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. Response links show a clear evidence connection; they do not assign responsibility.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Failure of the Firearms Licensing Department to check the PNC record

Wider context from the report

“(1) The police process which should have ensured that the Firearms Licensing Department was notified of the Environment Agency’s prosecution of Mr. Haddock failed to be effective (2) The offences with which Mr. Haddock had been charged by the Environment Agency were correctly placed onto Mr. Haddock’s PNC record on 11th October 2021 – a year before the final decision was made to return his shotgun to him in November 2022. The Firearms Licensing Department had not checked his PNC record since 4th August 2021 (more than a year before the final decision to return his guns was made) and were therefore unaware of the prosecution. ”

Is this part of a recurring concern?

Yes — Unreliable firearms licensing decisions; Unreliable recording and retrieval of safety-critical risk information on the PNC.

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Source evidence

How this individual concern was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. Response links show a clear evidence connection; they do not assign responsibility.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Failure of the police process to notify the Firearms Licensing Department of the Environment Agency’s prosecution

Wider context from the report

“(1) The police process which should have ensured that the Firearms Licensing Department was notified of the Environment Agency’s prosecution of Mr. Haddock failed to be effective (2) The offences with which Mr. Haddock had been charged by the Environment Agency were correctly placed onto Mr. Haddock’s PNC record on 11th October 2021 – a year before the final decision was made to return his shotgun to him in November 2022. The Firearms Licensing Department had not checked his PNC record since 4th August 2021 (more than a year before the final decision to return his guns was made) and were therefore unaware of the prosecution. ”

Is this part of a recurring concern?

Yes — Unreliable firearms licensing risk assessment and information sharing.

Open source report

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Automatically redirect firearms-related Daily Activity File reports to the Continuous Assessment Team inbox for ongoing suitability review.

Verbatim wording from the response

“Whenever a PNC record is updated, a so-called Daily Activity File (DAF) report is generated and provided to the relevant police force via an automatic file transfer from PNC Hendon. Any DAF reports that are specific to firearm and shotgun certificate holders in the Devon & Cornwall Police area are assigned a code of ‘50HL’ and forwarded to our Firearms Licensing and Explosives Unit (FLEU) via email.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Check the PNC and other databases during initial suitability-review enquiries.

Verbatim wording from the response

“1. The FLEU undertake a check on the PNC as a part of their initial enquiries in the aforementioned suitability reviews. More generally, suitability reviews encompass research of other databases.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 3 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Allocate additional police personnel to the Firearms Licensing and Explosives Unit to increase review capacity.

Verbatim wording from the response

“In 2021 there was a significant backlog of outstanding reviews in the FLEU as a result of both the Covid-19 pandemic adversely impacting on the FLEU’s ability to undertake related enquiries, and the Devon & Cornwall Police response to the tragic events of August 2021 in Keyham in Plymouth, which you will be aware of. A significant additional number of police personnel have since been allocated to the FLEU, and there is significant additional senior oversight of the FLEU within Devon & Cornwall Police. In general terms, there has been a significant improvement in the FLEU’s ability to undertake reviews of the type that we are concerned with presently. More specifically in relation to the concern that you raise, the following processes are now in place:”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 3 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Require the Continuous Assessment Team to review relevant prosecution reports and record the review as underway in the National Firearms Licensing Management System.

Verbatim wording from the response

“• Any DAF reports which reflect a prosecution of the type that Mr Haddock was subject to are subject to a suitability review by the CAT. The National Firearms Licensing Management System (NFLMS) is updated to reflect that this review is underway. The NFLMS is viewable by all police forces and other law enforcement agencies.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Require an immediate pre-return PNC check after finalising a suitability review, with a further review if relevant new information is identified.

Verbatim wording from the response

“• When a suitability review is finalised and a decision is made to return a certificate / licence and firearms to the certificate / licence holder, the CAT are also now required to review the PNC to ensure that it contains no new updates of relevance. If any such updates are identified, a further suitability review takes place.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 3 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Other statements in published responses

These actions and other statements could not be clearly connected to one concern in this report.

Recipient-stated actions An action is something a recipient says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to a concern raised.4

  1. 1

    Conduct additional checks with relevant agencies, licensing or regulatory bodies, and government enforcement agencies when a PNC check identifies a prosecution or other concern.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.
  2. 2

    Record the reviewing personnel and completion of each suitability review so both are clearly identifiable.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.
  3. 3

    Provide additional senior oversight of the Firearms Licensing and Explosives Unit.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.
  4. 4

    Require the Continuous Assessment Team supervisor to dip-sample suitability reviews for appropriate action and recording.

    Stated by Devon & Cornwall PoliceStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 19 December 2025.

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Conduct additional checks with relevant agencies, licensing or regulatory bodies, and government enforcement agencies when a PNC check identifies a prosecution or other concern.

Verbatim wording from the response

“2. Where a PNC check highlights a prosecution such as that undertaken by the Environment Agency in the present case (or any other matter of concern), additional checks are undertaken with other agencies, licensing or regulatory bodies or government enforcement agencies, to ensure all information is reviewed and considered as part of the suitability review.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 3 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Record the reviewing personnel and completion of each suitability review so both are clearly identifiable.

Verbatim wording from the response

“• Measures have been implemented by the FLEU to ensure that the member of police personnel conducting the review, and the review itself being completed, can be clearly identified.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Provide additional senior oversight of the Firearms Licensing and Explosives Unit.

Verbatim wording from the response

“In 2021 there was a significant backlog of outstanding reviews in the FLEU as a result of both the Covid-19 pandemic adversely impacting on the FLEU’s ability to undertake related enquiries, and the Devon & Cornwall Police response to the tragic events of August 2021 in Keyham in Plymouth, which you will be aware of. A significant additional number of police personnel have since been allocated to the FLEU, and there is significant additional senior oversight of the FLEU within Devon & Cornwall Police. In general terms, there has been a significant improvement in the FLEU’s ability to undertake reviews of the type that we are concerned with presently. More specifically in relation to the concern that you raise, the following processes are now in place:”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 3 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response

Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation

Require the Continuous Assessment Team supervisor to dip-sample suitability reviews for appropriate action and recording.

Verbatim wording from the response

“• The CAT supervisor is required to ‘dip sample’ this work to ensure that any such reviews have been actioned and recorded appropriately.”

Source location

Response from Devon & Cornwall Police
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025

Open published response
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Information checked against the published report and official responses · Data reviewed 7 Sep 2026 · About data quality and limitations

Data last updated 7 September 2026