CLEVELAND Police is one of 18 forces from across the country which are being investigated by the police watchdog for failings in handling historical sex abuse cases, according to reports.

Complaints have been received by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) about the forces, including allegations of what it calls “high-level corruption” – although this is not understood to relate to Cleveland.

So far 27 inquiries have been concluded by the IPCC across the 18 constabularies, leading to up to 15 officers facing potential disciplinary action, figures obtained by the BBC under Freedom of Information laws showed.

There are 84 independent IPCC inquiries – in which the commission directly investigates – ongoing, including four cases from Cleveland Police, and 102 managed inquiries taking place.

A Cleveland Police spokesperson said: “All the cases currently with the IPCC are historic cases which have been referred to the IPCC by Cleveland Police. We remain absolutely committed to safeguarding children and we will continue to work closely with partner agencies to achieve this.”

More than a quarter of the probes relate to South Yorkshire Police in its handling of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham, and most of the others are from the Metropolitan Police and Essex Police.

Julian Blazeby, the IPCC’s director of major investigations, said: “We continue to receive referrals on police actions in child sexual abuse cases from forces across the country.

“The IPCC is committed to investigating the most sensitive and serious incidents of alleged police wrongdoing and many child sexual abuse cases fall within that remit.”

Some of the cases date back decades and include damaging claims that investigations were brought to a halt despite evidence of abuse being uncovered, particularly in London, where there were claims investigations were shut down prematurely because the suspects were politicians.