Two police officers who conducted a strip search of a 15-year-old black girl at school committed gross misconduct, a disciplinary hearing has found.
The schoolgirl, known only as Child Q, was wrongly suspected of possessing cannabis, was on her period and forced to expose her intimate parts while no appropriate adult was present.
The Metropolitan Police said they are "deeply sorry" for the experience of Child Q and apologised for "organisational failings" that led to the strip search.
Protests were held after the incident took place in 2020.
Hundreds of protesters attend a rally in front of Hackney Town Hall to demonstrate their support of Child Q
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The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) director, Amanda Rowe, said: "Our sympathies remain with the young woman, who was a child at the time, and her family.
"It’s important to acknowledge that at the heart of this case was a child, in a vulnerable position, who officers failed to protect and unjustifiably subjected to a strip search. We know this incident has had a significant and long-lasting impact on her wellbeing.
"This case also led to widespread public concern, and we have heard directly from a range of community stakeholders about the impact that this incident has had on trust and confidence in policing.
"Their decision to strip search a 15-year-old at school on suspicion of a small amount of cannabis was completely disproportionate.
"They failed to follow the policies that exist to ensure that children in these situations have appropriate protective measures in place."
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A woman hangs a placard on the wall outside Stoke Newington police station during the demonstration.
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Commander Kevin Southworth from the Met Police said: "The experience of Child Q should never have happened and was truly regrettable. We have sincerely apologised to Child Q since this incident happened.
"Again, I am deeply sorry to Child Q and her family for the trauma that we caused her, and the damage this incident caused to the trust and confidence Black communities across London have in our officers.
"While the officers involved did not act correctly, we acknowledge there were organisational failings. Training of our officers around strip search and the type of search carried out on Child Q was inadequate, and our oversight of the power was also severely lacking.
"This left officers, often young in service or junior in rank, making difficult decisions in complex situations with little information, support or clear resources to help their decision-making. What happened to Child Q was a catalyst for change, both for the Met and for policing nationally."
Hundreds of people block the A10 and put posters on the Police Station on March 17, 2022 in
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The panel found that the action by two of the detectives amounted to gross misconduct.
Misconduct was proven in the action taken by a third constable.
During the IOPC hearing, the search was described as unjustified, inappropriate, disproportionate, humiliating and degrading.
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