Further Information

Property baseline

A significant amount of work has been undertaken to develop a strong baseline of property data through the Masterplan Phase 1 work. This has provided an evidence base from an Estates perspective to determine which buildings are worth retaining and which ones should be disposed of because they are at the end of their economic lives. Disposing of a building that is not for purpose does not of course mean a withdrawal from that community, but that a new solution is required by replacing that building or delivering services from another suitable location. Either way the principles of sustained community and public access will apply. This exercise has highlighted that the most acute problems with regards to the condition of the Estate are in the West of Scotland as well as in Tayside, most notably, in Dundee.

For example, within the West cluster, almost all properties in Glasgow are at the end of their economic life – most of the largest police buildings were constructed for the creation of Strathclyde Police in 1975 meaning they will turn 50 years old in 2025. They are large inefficient buildings that were designed for 1970s policing. It is conservatively estimated that over £40 million of investment would be required just to keep these buildings operational over the coming years, but that investment would not enhance the Estate in Glasgow – it would still be 50 years old, not fit for purpose, and may not be located to suit demand and needs.
Police Scotland Estate by building age – pre & post 1990

The aged nature of the Police Scotland Estate is shown by region below. Police buildings built and completed before 1990 are shown in red, post-1990 sites in blue. Many of the post-1990 sites were constructed before the creation of Police Scotland and are 20-30 years old.

Over the course of Summer 2024 there has been significant engagement with all core business areas in policing to understand their current and future requirements. This is an exercise that will be ongoing so that the Masterplan can continually be iterated in order that it continues to support the development and implementation of the revised model of policing. This focus will be on providing an Estate that best meets operational requirements, and the needs of the communities that we serve. We have also engaged with other key stakeholders such as Local Authorities and other emergency services to ensure alignment and promote the principles of co-location and best value, where appropriate.

From that work a set of options was developed based upon these requirements, for the highest priority areas which have been identified through detailed Estates condition data. Further details of the engagement process are set out in Appendix 1.
Development of a high-level capital programme

By bringing together the Estates baseline data with the operational requirements, an outline 10-year capital programme has been developed.

What it highlights is that in order to drive meaningful improvement in the Estate, and to meet the developing future operational requirements, an investment of approximately £500m is required over the next 10 years.

Scenario planning with Estates professionals, supported by operational input has supported our high-level Masterplan. This plan has indicative numbers of the buildings that could be invested in. This would however be the subject of detailed design following approved investment. If this investment funding is available, it could support the upgrade of 122 existing buildings to an improved condition, the construction of several new “deployment hubs”, and the rollout of new community policing bases and touch-down points, in the parts of the country where the Estate is rated as having the lowest building condition scores. It would also support the construction of new custody hubs to replace a large number of existing custody suites that are no longer fit for purpose.

At this stage, the purpose of the high-level 10-year capital programme is to provide Police Scotland, the SPA and Scottish Government with an evidence-based indication of the level of investment required to modernise the Estate.

Additionally, it is to set the strategic direction for the way in which we organisationally approach managing our Estate. Through understanding the requirements to support the revised model of policing, we are able to build Estates implementation plans based on a single agreed strategy, the pace of delivery of which will be dependent upon levels of investment available.

The investment will also provide a wider national benefit by making sites available for housing and redevelopment, create jobs and investment in the construction sector across the country. In addition to the direct economic benefit of the Masterplan investment, the disposal of redundant buildings and sites, with an estimated value of £79m, will create residential and commercial development opportunities across Scotland.

The masterplan provides an opportunity to support wider operational transformation and Vision 2030 with a hub and spoke model in urban areas being the operating model for local policing. This means new deployment hubs supporting smaller community policing points maintaining or enhancing the presence in the communities, whilst separating out Custody, Productions and Operational Support into pan divisional hubs.

Some elements of the model can also be applied to more rural areas, and will be adapted to meet local needs, including potential cross-border/divisional facilities. The model means police officers start a shift at the deployment hub where they have equipment, office support and welfare facilities, but spend most of their time in the community and are able to drop in and work, when necessary, at the local policing points. We recognise from the outset that the detailed design of this approach will need to be demand led and done in collaboration with our partners and our communities. In some areas of high harm, we recognise the importance of permanent smaller local community hubs.

Deployment Hub – a deployment hub is a building that provides a dedicated base location for Local Policing officers to start and finish their shifts, with all the required facilities such as lockers, welfare and digital facilities and police vehicle parking. Deployment hubs would usually host larger numbers of officers than is currently seen and allow officers to prepare for and return from their patrol areas and duties in a shared and fully equipped space. This model has been used by other police forces in the UK, with buildings ranging from new build warehouse units (with internal conversion and fitout) to refurbished and remodelled former police stations. Hubs may also contain other facilities such as divisional management, training or specialist units, however the primary use is frontline Local Policing officers. In less populated areas the hub may be co-located with other blue-light services or be part of a multi-functional police facility. Flexibility of the model and research into existing hub models will underpin the use of the hub concept.

A key principle for the Masterplan Implementation is the flexibility of the Estate model to be designed to fit the local needs of policing and the community we serve, reflecting the diverse geography of Scotland. Whilst hubs have clear benefits in densely populated urban areas, other options may be more appropriate in other areas. Working closely with operational teams, the efficiency and effectiveness of deployment/custody/productions hubs will be aligned with the new operating models, and also balanced against other factors such as travel time, co-location and co-working opportunities. Considerations around technical requirements to support the future needs of policing, for example in relation to digital requirements for Body Worn Video, will also be included and built into our future plans for the Estate. Hubs will be supported by satellite locations where these are required to provide operational effectiveness, safety and efficiency for staff and detainees.

The detailed design of the Masterplan incorporates a wide range of engagement with internal and external stakeholders and is focused on delivering an Estate to meet the operational needs of Police Scotland. It is not a ‘property led’ process, but one that will provide an enhanced Estate that meets operational needs within the applicable parameters. It will incorporate policies such as co-location, where for example the new ‘Asset Sharing Principles’ for Police Scotland and local authorities (developed jointly with COSLA and SOLACE) will be applied.

In parallel the Masterplan will facilitate wider organisational change. With the development of new digital tools, the management of Productions can be streamlined to reduce physical storage and handling of items, reducing officer abstractions to deliver or collect items. New custody procedures and case disposal processes, combined with the enhanced efficiency, welfare and safety of custody hubs (supported by satellite facilities), will deliver a step change in custody management.

Within communities, the provision of new Local Policing hubs, linked to co-location and collaboration with partner agencies will maintain the policing presence and access in communities. A Local Policing touch point or hub could range from the retention of a smaller community police station through to a dedicated surgery or drop in within a community centre. More permanent police hubs will be created through collaboration with partners such as Local Authorities, in existing council buildings or through dedicated shop front premises.

Custody and Productions

Custody plays a pivotal role in operational policing and the custody Estate will develop within the Masterplan in tandem with the Criminal Justice Transformation work. Capacity evaluation shows that Police Scotland has cell capacity that is more than double its day-to-day operational requirement (and significantly in excess of surge demand) across 62 locations nationally. Excess capacity can be reduced whilst improving the effectiveness of the custody provision, support better delivery of criminal justice outcomes whilst ensuring the safety and wellbeing of detainees. As with deployment hubs, the precise mode of delivery and operation remains under development and will vary by location according to demand and needs. This work will also support alternative disposal methods for offences. The proposed future custody Estate is likely to comprise of custody hubs in urban areas and local custody centres in rural areas. Further work in the detailed design phase will see detailed demand driving the capacity and locations needed. This will include the development of policies around travel time which balance a professional custody provision with protecting front line services and service provision. We remain committed to a transparent approach with consultation with key stakeholders at each stage.

In parallel to the Custody Estate, the present production holding Estate is extensive and has not significantly altered from the legacy force era. Police Scotland has over 80 Production stores, with a significant number of ‘Temporary Stores’. The standard and condition of the stores varies across the force area, however many are in poor state of repair and not fit for purpose. This issue is compounded by ongoing seizures of unnecessary productions, with challenges over the storage and transportation of hazardous substances, cash, and controlled drugs. Work is also ongoing with COPFS and Scottish Government around moving towards the ‘Digitalisation’ of productions. A review of the Production Estate is presently ongoing, including standardising national processes around retention, storage and disposal. This will work in tandem with the Masterplan to develop a revised and more efficient Productions Estate, with a reduction in the number of sites and the development of strategically located Production hubs on or near to the main arterial routes, supported by local spoke sites where required.

Impact & Consequences of Estate Investment
The £500m investment will deliver significant reductions in the operating cost of the Estate, currently projected to be £130m over the life of the 10-year Masterplan programme period compared to current costs, along with a substantial improvement in energy efficiency and carbon reduction. However, the overall number of policing locations across Scotland will not change significantly, it is more that the size and layout of policing facilities will change to meet the modern needs of policing.

Critically the investment will also make a major contribution to the improvement of the wellbeing of the officers and staff through better and more suitable accommodation that supports them in their roles. Overall, the investment in the Estate is likely to provide a very positive impact on Police Scotland across all aspects of the organisation and its operations.

By investing for the long term in the Estate, and with the direct involvement of internal operational stakeholders in the Masterplan, this will allow the enabling function of Estates to facilitate and enhance the wider 2030 Vision and improve Police Scotland’s ability to work with partner agencies and communities.

Should the investment funding not be available, then the Masterplan will become a process of ‘managed decline’ of the Estate. Available funding will be deployed to maintain the compliant operation of the existing Estate. Due to current conditions of buildings this will lead to the further building closures as buildings become uneconomic to repair or maintain in a compliant condition. In the medium term this creates a risk that the estate approaches a ‘minimal viable’ operational state, and capital and revenue may have to be diverted into the estate from other budget areas to prevent service failure due to building failure. The Estate supports critical functions such as custody and productions.

A lack of funding will also see Net Zero and related targets not being achieved, as the estate is a major contributor to the organisational footprint. It will also directly impact operational policing and staff wellbeing. The Masterplan investment is a key component of the Police Scotland response to the HMICS Wellbeing Inspection recommendations, so this will hold back the provision of a fit for purpose estate to support staff.

Next Steps
Upon endorsement of the Masterplan, work will immediately start on the detailed design of the Masterplan and its implementation. Work will continue to identify routes for the funding of the investment plans (see Financial Implications below). Given the scale of the investment and estates activity, Police Scotland will commence the scoping of the resource implications to support this work. The Masterplan will require additional resourcing in Estates and supporting functions including Procurement, Digital and Legal.

The scoping, design and resourcing activity will be progressed based on the agreed funding position. Estates and supporting functions will be stood up during FY25/26 to provide the required capacities and capabilities to deliver the Masterplan. This is to facilitate Masterplan implementation from FY26/27 onwards, based upon the assumption that the additional Masterplan funding will be available from FY26/27 onwards.

Irrespective of the immediate funding parameters, in FY25/26 Police Scotland Estates will be prioritising investment in the refurbishment of those sites identified for retention under the Masterplan. This will provide an immediate benefit to the organisation and will minimise the risk of abortive or ‘regret’ spend. Should additional funding not be available for FY26/27 onwards, the Estate strategy will revert to a ‘keep compliant’ basis.