Report Summary
This report provides members of the Complaints & Conduct Committee with an overview of SPA Quarterly Report Q3 – 24/25.
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Meeting
The publication discussed was referenced in the meeting below
Complaints & Conduct Committee - 27 February 2025
Date : 27 February 2025
Location : Online
Further Detail on the Report Topic
SPA Complaints Performance
Appendix A provides an overview of the complaint handling responsibilities of the SPA with explanatory text on reporting terminology.
The SPA Complaints Quarterly Performance Report, including key statistics reflecting the position at the end of Q3 2024/25, is attached as Appendix B to this report and provides comparison to the previous 7 quarters.
Workload Management
Detail on ongoing workload is presented as a separate agenda item at the private session of this meeting.
As previously reported, SPA dip-sampling of Police Scotland closed complaints is temporarily paused due to capacity challenges within the team. Following recent recruitment to the team, it is intended that this will resume in 2025/26.
Following the November Committee meeting, the fourth annual Committee-specific report, covering the business of the Committee during 2023-24, was published on the Authority website.
Stakeholder Meetings
The National Complaint Handling Development Group (NCHDG) met again on 5 December 2024, chaired by Superintendent Kate Stephen. The meeting was joined by staff from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), who provided a presentation on their work, with a focus on how they assist policing with organisational learning through a variety of methods. In addition, the following was discussed:
• Status update on progress of recommendations from the PIRC audit on the 6 stage Complaint handling process
• The introduction of Police Scotland’s new complaint capture form, and plans to introduce capture of EDI information
• Update on engagement sessions with frontline policing divisions regarding themes identified around complaints, and how to help reduce these in future
Organisational Learning
The SPA is committed to promoting a culture of organisational learning. Opportunities are identified through a variety of sources including the handling of complaints within the remit of the SPA and PIRC Complaint Handling Reviews (CHRs) if applicable. No specific organisational learning opportunities have been identified during this reporting period.
