# The Authorised Investigators (Complaints and Misconduct) Regulations 2026, Regulation 50: Special procedure: PSFA friend


(1) This regulation applies where the person investigating a complaint or recordable conduct matter has given the person concerned a notice under regulation 49.
(2) The person concerned may choose—
(a) an authorised investigator;
(b) a person employed by the Crown in service of the Cabinet Office who performs the functions of the PSFA; or
(c) an official of a trade union within the meaning of sections 1 and 119 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992,
who is not otherwise involved in the case to act as their PSFA friend.
(3) A PSFA friend may—
(a) advise the person concerned throughout any investigation or proceedings under these Regulations;
(b) provide any relevant statement or relevant document to the person investigating the complaint or recordable conduct matter;
(c) accompany the person concerned to any interview of that person conducted by the person investigating; and
(d) make representations to the Director General concerning any aspect of any investigation or proceedings under these Regulations.
(4) Where a PSFA friend is an authorised investigator or a person employed by the Crown in service of the Cabinet Office who performs the functions of the PSFA, the Minister must permit the PSFA friend to use a reasonable amount of their contractual working time for the purposes mentioned in paragraph (3).

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/1098/regulation/50 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/authorised-investigators-complaints-and-misconduct-regulations-2026/regulation-50
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.