Who We Are

The Scottish Police Authority is independent of both the Scottish Government and policing. It is the primary governance body for policing in Scotland, and was established as a public body on 1 April 2013 by the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012. It was set up to hold the Chief Constable to account; promote, support and oversee improvement in policing. It is also responsible for the management and delivery of Forensic Services in Scotland and Independent Custody Visiting Scotland.

In this section, find out more about the Authority’s priorities, the Board and the Leadership team.

Who We Are

What We Do

The Scottish Police Authority is responsible for maintaining policing. It has four specific areas of responsibility:

promoting the policing principles

supporting continuous improvement

keeping policing under review

holding the Chief Constable to account.

This section tells you in outline what the Authority does.

What We Do

Complaints

Are you dissatisfied with the service you have received from policing in Scotland?

The Scottish Police Authority, Police Scotland and the Police Investigations and Reviews Commissioner (PIRC) all have a role to play in considering complaints about policing in Scotland.

In this section, find out who to direct your complaint to. We also welcome written communication in Gaelic (see our Gaelic Language Plan).

Complaints

Published: 01 August 2024

Privacy Notice for Employees

Category: Corporate Document

Pol 20180524 Privacy Notice For Employees (pdf, .17MB )

Report Summary

This is the Privacy Notice of the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) in respect of the personal data of SPA Employees, whose data that we process in carrying out our functions and tasks.

Related Publications

The documents below are related by Topic and are the most recently published

Terms of Reference - Legal

Published: 27 November 2025

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SPA Corporate Governance Framework

Published: 27 November 2025

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Terms of Reference - Audit Risk & Assurance Committee

Published: 27 November 2025

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Strategic Policing Plan for Scotland 2026-2029 - Consultation Draft

Published: 27 November 2025

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Privacy Notice for Employees

Report Summary

Related Publications

Terms of Reference - Legal

SPA Corporate Governance Framework

Terms of Reference - Audit Risk & Assurance Committee

Strategic Policing Plan for Scotland 2026-2029 - Consultation Draft