COMPLAINTS against North-East police forces are on the rise, new figures reveal.

Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria police forces experienced an increase in complaints from the public in 2011/12, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said.

Only North Yorkshire recorded a drop when the latest figures were compared with the last 12 month period, 2010/11.

The police watchdog said there were 443 complaints recorded against Cleveland Police during 2011/12, up from 436 the previous year.

From 49 appeals dealt with by the IPCC about the force's handling of complaints, 22 - or 45 per cent - were upheld, higher than the national average of 38 per cent.

Superintendent Martin Campbell, head of the force's professional standards department, said: "While we have seen an overall increase in complaints and allegations made, it's important that people come forward so that we can learn the lessons from their experiences and improve our service to members of the public.

"We expect our officers and police staff to have high standards of integrity and professionalism and when this is found not to be the case appropriate action will be taken."

In Durham there were 243 complaints recorded, up from 199 the previous 12 months.

The IPCC said it completed 56 appeals about Durham Police's handling of complaints.

Of those 22 - or 39 per cent - were upheld.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Winship, deputy head of the force's professional standards department, said: "Although the IPCC report does show an increase in our recorded complaints, we still have some of the lowest figures nationally. "We also have a good record of dealing with complaints quickly where appropriate, and our actions are focused around the complainant."

A total of 680 complaints were recorded against Northumbria Police, up from 608 in 2010/11.

The IPCC completed 146 appeals during 2011/12 about the force's handling of complaints, upholding 78, or 53 per cent - more than half.

Northumbria Police Deputy Chief Constable Mark Gilmore said: "While there is always room for improvement, in percentage terms, the number of our officers who are complained about is less than the national average. Indeed the latest IPCC figures confirm that it is continuing to fall.

"The key challenge that the report identified was the need to reduce the number of appeals made by members of the public which were upheld by the IPCC. This usually is as a result of members of the public being unhappy about the way their complaint has been handled.

"We took this matter very seriously and improved our training and guidance, resulting in an improvement in this area. This improvement is reflected in the latest IPCC figures currently published on their website.”

North Yorkshire bucked the regional trend, having 496 complaints recorded, down from 525 the previous 12 months.

A total of 43 appeals about the force's handling of complaints were completed by the IPCC in 2011/12, upholding just 9 - or 21 per cent - way below the national average.

Steve Read, director of professional standards at North Yorkshire Police, said: "We are pleased to note that the rate of appeals against North Yorkshire Police local resolutions and investigations is significantly below the national average.

"We endeavour to satisfy the requirements of complainants where available evidence allows."

The IPCC said the total number of complaints against forces in England and Wales fell for the second successive year to 30,143.

However it said it was dealing with an increasing number of appeals from people unhappy with the way their complaints have been handled by forces.