Policing Together and working with communities

Policing Together programme

Policing Together was established in 2021 to drive the sustainable and meaningful change required to ensure our mission to keep people safe applies to all communities.

Last May, I provided an update on progress including investment in leadership courses for over 5,500 officers and staff, a deep dive on our standards of professional behaviour, new training on the Equality Act and upholding our values, and a focus on communications.

Following appointment last summer, Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton has refreshed the programme, with a focus on putting Policing Together into practice across leadership, communications, learning, and communities.

Officers and staff are being provided with enhanced learning including Act Don't React behavioural science courses and Unity Through Learning, a one-day in-person anti-racist training programme. The Service has also refreshed its Community Advisor cadre which now includes Black and African advisors for the first time.

Connecting with communities is essential for policing and, in January, I welcomed key individuals from religious and minority ethnic communities to a dinner at Police Scotland’s Headquarters, Tulliallan, as part of a series of engagement sessions focused on building stronger relationships and better understanding of underrepresented communities.

As part of the Policing Together programme, we continue to recognise and celebrate key dates and events throughout the year under our inclusion calendar, including Race Equality Week, LGBT History Month, Holocaust Memorial Day, Chanukah and Christmas, in the period covered by this report.

We continue to develop mechanisms to assess impact, and I am clear progress must be felt in the experiences of our communities, including officers and staff.

I continue to be grateful for the support and challenge of the Scottish Police Authority in this area, led by Tom Halpin as chair of the Policing Together Oversight Group.

Neurodiversity and policing conference

On Wednesday, 12, and Thursday, 13, February Assistant Chief Constable Mark Sutherland led our contribution to a pioneering Neurodiversity and Policing conference, which offered a unique platform for learning, exploring and challenging how neurodiversity impacts Police Scotland officers and staff as well as the public we serve.

Hundreds of delegates participated in the event, co-hosted by Edinburgh Napier University, in partnership with the Global Law Enforcement and Public Health Association and the Scottish Institute for Policing Research. The conference brought together international and local speakers from academia, public health, and policing as well as those with lived experience, to explore the subject and share knowledge and understanding.

Around 15% of the public are considered to be neurodivergent - and with an estimated 20 and 30% of Police Scotland officers and staff also being neurodivergent, this makes them one of the largest minority groups in the service.

Mental Health Taskforce

On Wednesday, 8 January, Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton and Chief Superintendent Matt Paden provided evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Criminal Justice Committee along with academics and health colleagues during a session on policing vulnerable people.

I've been clear that I want to ensure members of the public in mental health crisis or distress get the care and support they need and deserve from the agency best able to provide it, while allowing police officers to return to core policing duties more quickly.

As previously reported Deputy Chief Constable Alan Speirs is leading Police Scotland's collaboration with partners including the Authority and the Scottish Government and we've established a mental health taskforce to drive work.

During the parliamentary evidence session, ACC Paton and Chief Superintendent Paden outlined some progress being driven by the Mental Health Taskforce, including:
• Training of Contact, Command and Control (C3) personnel to use the Mental Health Pathway which is a collaboration with NHS24. Just under 11,000 referrals have been made since the pathway was first established in August 2020, ensuring officers attend fewer calls where they are not needed while members of the public access the right care at an earlier stage;
• Progress to ensure all frontline officers now have access to the Mental Health Index (MHI) to access clinicians in their area when they have encountered an individual in mental health distress. The clinician will advise on the correct course of action and arrange access to the most appropriate services;
• The continued use of the Distress Brief Intervention (DBI) Service which enables trained officers to signpost and refer people experiencing mental health distress to the right agency which can provide the support they need, allowing them to redirect to core policing duties. Over 1,600 officers are now trained in DBI and more than 4,200 referrals have been made since 2017.

Last week, I welcomed the Scottish Government's publication of the Framework for Collaboration and Collaborative Commitments documents on Wednesday, 12 February, which set out how we will work with other local services, and across boundaries, to deliver a whole system, person-centred, trauma-informed approach to mental health incidents.

Recorded police warnings - Scottish Police Authority public webinar

On Wednesday, December 11, Assistant Chief Constable Wendy Middleton joined the Scottish Police Authority's public webinar to discuss the use of recorded police warnings and other direct measures in policing.

The use of police direct measures is a well-established practice, supported by the Lord Advocate and with published operational guidelines. Offences considered not appropriate for direct measures include sexual offences, domestic abuse, conduct involving hate crime and behaviour deliberately targeted at vulnerable individuals including children.

Accountability in the appropriate use of direct measures remains an important principle and relevant data is collated and monitored to ensure accuracy of recording and use.

Participants in the roundtable discussion included the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, Edinburgh University and Community Justice Scotland.

The panel took questions submitted by the public covering a range of issues including what offences warnings can be issued for and those which can't; the data collected to support public confidence and assurance of their use and the discretion used by officers to issue recorded police warnings.

The use of direct measures has a wider criminal justice benefit. They significantly shorten the length of time it can take for the same disposal to be achieved through the court process, reduce the volume of formal reports into the criminal justice system and give officers the ability to exercise their professional discretion.

I am grateful to the Authority for their oversight and support to build public understanding and assurance in this important area.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Chief Officer

In January, I welcomed Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Chief Officer Stuart Stevens to Police Scotland Headquarters, Tulliallan.

This was an important opportunity to congratulate Stuart on his appointment in November and discuss collaborative opportunities, as well as ongoing and recent partnership working, including Operation Moonbeam.

I'm grateful to Stuart for his ongoing commitment to meeting collective challenges and working together to deliver for communities as part of what is a key partnership for policing.

Corporate Parenting Plan

I recognise the vital role Police Scotland, as a Corporate Parent, plays in supporting and providing better opportunities for the Care Experienced community.

This is not simply a legal responsibility. It is also a moral obligation and the right thing to do. We recently published our Corporate Parenting Plan 2024-27 which outlines how we will continue to build relationships, confidence and improve service provision for people with experience of care.

Children and adults with experience of care played a key part in the development of this plan. Their knowledge and insight were invaluable, and we will continue to engage with the Care Experienced community on an ongoing basis to ensure we are delivering a service which best meets their needs.

Medics Against Violence conference

On 21 January 2025, Assistant Chief Constable Mark Sutherland was a keynote speaker at the recent Medics Against Violence conference, where delegates heard about journey of violence over the past 15 years.

ACC Sutherland spoke about Police Scotland's national violence strategy as well as the service's public health-led approach to prevention. He also highlighted the shared commitment of Police Scotland and Medics Against Violence to addressing the issue and harm by identifying the root causes and promoting early intervention.