Updates

Budget

Forensic Services continue to be on target to deliver a balanced budget in line with the funding awarded for 2023-24 as reported to the most recent Resources Committee on 15th November. We are working with finance colleagues in SPA Corporate on the budget for the coming financial year mindful of the continuing pressures on the overall policing budget.

We continue to look for savings to support our Efficiencies Plan which will deliver the savings necessary to fund the initial investment in our New Operating Model. The timing of the roll out of the New Operating Model has been reworked to ensure we will only take stages forward as and when we have the sustainable resources to do so.

HMICS progress on Assurance Review of Forensic Toxicology

Forensic Services have made good progress at addressing the recommendations in the HMICS Assurance review of Forensic Toxicology provision for Drugs Driving with all actions either on target, making good progress, or complete. We will continue to update SPA members on developments as we work with partners in Scottish Government, Police Scotland and COPFS to create a long-term sustainable model for drug-driving testing in Scotland.

In his annual report, His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary in Scotland said that he was grateful for the openness and candour of Forensic Services and Police Scotland staff and officers in facilitating this inspection.

Extensive forensic work on child abuse ring case

Five men and three women in November were found guilty of abusing children after a trial at the High Court in Glasgow that is thought to have been the largest prosecution of a child abuse ring in Scotland.

Forensic Services became involved in this case in October 2020 with the examination of the scene over several days when the allegations first came to light. This led to almost 100 productions being examined in the laboratory with more than 700 DNA samples analysed.

This complex case involved almost all areas of Forensic Services and the case was reported to the COPFS after more than one year’s work and a member of Forensic Services spent a day giving evidence at the High Court.

Justice Secretary opens new Moorepark Laboratory

The Justice Secretary Angela Constance and Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister Elena Whitham officially opened the new £5.9m state-of-the-art Post Mortem Toxicology Laboratory in Govan. This £5.9 million investment in the new Moorepark Laboratory and highly skilled scientists and staff secures the future of the Post Mortem Toxicology service in Scotland.

The laboratory – named Moorepark after the local area - will play a vital role in toxicology testing. Among the people attending the opening ceremony were: SPA Chair Martyn Evans; Forensic Services Committee Chair Paul Edie; the Solicitor General Ruth Charteris KC; and Chief Superintendent Hilary Sloan.

There was media interest with the Justice Secretary and the Director of Forensic Services being interviewed. Bringing post-mortem toxicology into Forensic Services allows us to enhance the drugs information we provide to support the work of the Drugs Harm Taskforce.

Performance Framework approved

The Forensic Services Performance Framework was approved at the recent meeting of the Forensic Services Committee on the 30th October 2023. The performance framework is, in effect, a summary of the key internal processes through which Forensic Services sets, delivers, monitors and reports on its priorities; as such it encompasses elements of strategy, finance, performance, people and risk management.

The members of the Forensic Services Senior Management Team will report to the Forensic Services Committee against this Framework every quarter. This sits alongside the Memorandum of Understanding, now approved and signed by COPFS and the Police Service of Scotland, which is an overarching document setting out details of the processes to provide forensic services and is underpinned by guidance documents shared by all parties to the agreement.

New Code of Practice for England & Wales

The Forensic Science Regulator’s Code of Practice came into force in England & Wales from 2 October 2023 in relation to a range of Forensic Science Activities. While this does not apply in Scotland, there is risk that over time there may be perceived to be a difference between the standards of work carried out in Scotland to that in England & Wales. Forensic Services, with colleagues in Police Scotland and other stakeholders continue to engage with the Forensic Science Regulator in England and Wales to assess any impact of the implementation of the Code of Practice.

Forensic Services Excellence 2023 Awards

The Forensic Services Excellence Awards, held on 29 September 2023, gave an opportunity to celebrate some of the excellence and innovative work in Forensic Services, which included:

International and academic collaboration on Fire Investigation Training;
Delivery of a long-term project to allow Forensic Services to self-weed fingerprints from the Police National Computer and UK National Fingerprint Database;
Innovative research about 3D printed firearms;
New approach to staff wellbeing;
The Post Mortem Toxicology team who transferred into Forensic Services;
The forensic work relating to the murder of Amber Gibson in Hamilton.

The chair of the Forensic Service Committee, along with members of SPA, key partners, the Forensic Services Senior Management Team and colleagues attended the awards ceremony at Stirling University. There were awards for people and teams across seven categories – and recognition for highly commended entries as well.

New bilingual logo

At the awards ceremony Forensic Services launched our new bilingual Forensic Services logo and visual identity which has been developed internally by the Graphics Manger at Police Scotland. The logo and visual identity reflect how Forensic Services deliver world-leading forensic science from the crime scene to the court and has been designed to complement the new SPA Corporate logo.

The logomark is based around a series of open concentric rings which illustrate how the number of different specialisms in Forensic Services work together under a common umbrella. The concentric circles represent a puzzle or a code that needs to be solved. They also relate to the focusing of a microscope or the scope of a firearm target and also hints at fingerprint marks – all of which are of central importance in forensic science. The new branding will be rolled out across Forensic Services and with partners on a no-cost replacement basis.

Annual Review

The Forensic Services Annual Review 22/23 has been published and presented to all attendees at the Excellence Awards. The review (attached as an appendix to this report) reflects the significant performance improvements during the year as well as highlighting:

Director’s review of the year
The New Forensic Services logo
The transfer of Post Mortem Toxicology service
Biometrics Commissioner praises work of Forensic Services
Our Strategic Approach
The New Operating Model
Forensic Services Capabilities
The benefits of the New Operating Model

International science justice conference

The Director attended an International Conference Science in the Interests of Justice held in London by The Royal Society which brought together leading scientists and prominent members of the legal community from across the UK and USA to explore approaches used by courts in their consideration, evaluation, and management of scientific evidence and expert witnesses.

The conference considered scientific evidence that appears currently in court as well as emerging areas of science, including neuroscience, human enhancement, and climate change attribution, that may appear in the courts in the coming years.