A CUMBRIA police officer was dismissed from her job after she inflated her GCSE grades to join the force.

Catherine McFadden was a serving police officer when she was dismissed following a misconduct hearing.

It was found the constable dishonestly stated she had achieved higher GCSE grades than she had when applying to transfer to the force.

It was also said that she referred to colleagues and superiors using 'rude' and derogatory' terms in Skype messages to her line manager.

A misconduct hearing also found that while being investigated by the police's Professional Standards Department, the officer took photos of 'confidential documents containing sensitive information' about covert policing for her own purposes.

She then kept the photographs on personal computer and in hard copy 'insecurely' at her home for several months.

The officer was dismissed and is now named on the College of Policing's barred list.

Her name came to light following a nationwide probe by Newsquest and the New Statesman magazine into the transparency of police dismissals.

The officer's misconduct hearing was held in public and details of her dismissal were published online.

But other forces were found to have struck off officers without either their names or misconduct being made public, despite regulations.

Answering questions on why the force does not publish press notices of misconduct outcomes, a spokesman for Cumbria Police said: "The Constabulary regularly publishes a list of misconduct outcomes on its website.

"These are identified by rank-only as outcomes can vary (e.g. written warning, dismissal).

"Cumbria Constabulary publishes on its website details of any upcoming misconduct hearings to be held in public, including information on how to attend hearings.

"These hearings are regularly attended and reported upon by journalists from both local and national publications.

"In the instance referenced, the hearing was pre-publicised on the force website so that media had the option to attend.

"The Constabulary will also publish details on its website on how the legally qualified chair reached their decision, when requested to do so by the Legally Qualified Chair."

Explaining the importance of public misconduct hearings, Cumbria Police said: "The vast majority of officers and specials who work for the Constabulary act with integrity and professionalism at all times. However, where conduct falls below the high standards expected by the force it is important for public to know they will be dealt with firmly."