Benefits Realisation

In spite of approval of the Full Business Case (FBC) for the new operating model for Forensic Services there was insufficient funding available within 2023/24 to provide the upfront investment required to implement the new model at pace and in line with the timescales in the Full Business Case.

As part of the budget discussions for 2025/26, Forensic Services have agreed not to progress further implementation of the model that requires additional investment in the revenue budget for the organisation. To make further progress Forensic Services must continue to work on delivering efficiencies and maximise the benefits that are being delivered through the changes undertaken to date. Where year-on year-savings can be identified this will allow the further elements of the model to be implemented.

Specialist resource was made available from Police Scotland to support a full review of benefits profiles and realisation plans, as well as the tracking and monitoring mechanisms in place. 

A retrospective review of benefits associated with the closed Access to Lab and Deployment of Scene Examination projects was carried out (See Appendix D). 

As a result of the streamlined request process delivered through the Access to Lab project our Police Scotland partners have realised a time efficiency saving equivalent to 4.4 full time equivalent (FTE) police officers p.a.

Through the deployment of scene examination project we have also now delivered national consistency in the assessment and prioritisation in the deployment of scene examination resource.

All associated benefits have been realised apart from the anticipated time savings in relation to clarification of information between requestors and Forensic Services colleagues. A workstream will be initiated in phase 4 of the op model implementation plan to deliver on this outstanding benefit.

As a result of progress made to date on implementation of our Operating Model a number of associated benefits have begun to be realised.  Headlines include:

An overview of progress to date on all Operating Model Project

benefits is contained at Appendix E.  Baseline and projected measures to track realisation of improved staff and customer satisfaction will be confirmed as part of our phase 4 implementation planning.

A programme of internal effectiveness reviews of completed workstreams within our operating model implementation is now underway.  The review process aims to evaluate if the scope and / or intended outcomes of the workstream have been delivered and evidence the extent to which the associated benefits have been realised. 

This is an internal process intended to provide interim information to support the independent Post Implementation Review (PIR) conducted by portfolio assurance colleagues within Police Scotland. It aims to give early indication of any improvement activity required to address any gaps with intended workstream outcomes. 

Reviews have been carried out with regard to the new ways of working in Search & Recovery Scenes and the introduction of our new Capability Team Manager role.  Updates on recommendations and action points will be included in future change reports for members.