Engagement Hub

Between March and May 2024, Police Scotland launched a public engagement survey which was available on Citizen Space. It sought to capture the views of the public and Police Scotland officers and staff to assess support for the use and introduction of enhanced CCTV technology.

The aim of this survey was to understand public and colleague opinions, consider their feedback and any concerns on the introduction of a enhanced CCTV object recognition system within Policing in Scotland, including any impact this might have on the public and police officers.

It also aimed to help us understand any reservations the public might have relating to enhanced CCTV and how we might introduce this alongside our broader Contact and Engagement Strategy, ensuring that we build both trust and confidence in Police Scotland.

All of this was done with the aim of enabling an effective approach which puts human rights and the views and needs of individuals and communities at the heart of what we do.

Our survey received 1,369 responses from members of the public and colleagues (141 current or former Police Scotland colleagues and 1,228 members of the public).

Responses highlighted mixed support for enhanced CCTV:

• The vast majority (95% agree) of policing colleagues agree it will be a helpful addition to our available tools for responding to threat, risk and harm.
• While there was considerable support and recognition of the benefits and opportunities for operational policing, there were some concerns, with 11% of colleagues disagreeing that the technology would ‘only have positive effects across operational policing in Aberdeen City’.
• 52% of the entire cohort (both Police Scotland colleagues and members of the public) agree they would feel safer knowing Police Scotland has the capacity to use this technology in their local area. 23% expressed they would “never” feel safer knowing this, indicating a sentiment among a small number that this technology would not enable greater feelings of safety.
• Nearly half (48% and 44% respectively) of the cohort agreed that enhanced CCTV technology would increase their confidence and trust in Police Scotland, particularly women, people in the LGBT+ community, and (to a lesser extent) those living in areas most affected by poverty. Children and young people were 11% less likely to agree it would increase their confidence, highlighting some concerns among this subgroup.
• Most (84%) agreed there should be clear guidelines for how CCTV object recognition software is used.
• Qualitative analysis highlighted mixed support for CCTV object recognition software, with respondents discussing benefits of its use (for example, enhanced crime detection/ prevention). Some members of the public fear that this new software will take police officers away from communities. Analysis also revealed some communities already have lack of trust in police, and some believe that police will misuse the software.

Your views will inform the next steps of the decision-making process, including helping to shape the development of the guidance for the use of the software, if it is approved for use following further scrutiny as part of our process.

We will now move forward to the next steps through our Rights Based Pathway. We are committed to a ‘no surprises’ and transparent approach with the public and our colleagues regarding Police Scotland’s use of enhanced CCTV technology as part of our 2030 Vision of Safer Communities, Less Crime, Supported Victims and a Thriving Workforce.

In April 2023, Police Scotland continued with our local policing survey to gather views from Scotland’s diverse communities.

Your Police 2023-2024 remained open throughout the year and helped us understand people’s opinions of policing in their local area, as well as tell us about any concerns regarding their area which was affecting their safety and wellbeing.

Your feedback via the survey has helped us ensure that our policing services in your community remained relevant and accessible.

In total, we received 15,281 responses over 12 months, including over 50,000 free-text responses. There were 6,500 responses received in September 2024  – highlighting the continued dedication of local policing divisions in listening to the communities they serve.

These responses are received by people choosing to take part and inviting a broad range of people from throughout Scotland and our communities have done so. We cannot strictly control sampling, as individuals could potentially complete the survey multiple times and in some cases, this can lead to findings skewed towards the views of those motivated to respond to the survey. We know through benchmarking that this is a strong and reliable approach and we want to ensure that anyone, anywhere in Scotland, can provide their feedback about policing and engage with us in a continuous conversation about policing in their local area.

Our statistical analysis shows that the sample is broadly characteristic of the population, particularly by geographic area, region and Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD). With the level of responses we have gathered so far, we are able to evidence statistically significant differences and similarities between groups with a very high degree of confidence that this is accurate.

The average public confidence level for the period April 2022 – March 2023 was 37%. This includes people who ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that they have confidence in local police. Confidence levels among organisations who responded to Your Police (143 organisations) averaged 40%. We know public confidence in local policing can fluctuate. Within the benchmarked YouGov monthly tracker, public confidence in Scottish policing for the same time period is 46%, higher than the rest of the UK by 6% percentage points.

We learned that things which effect public confidence include police visibility and accessibility, community engagement and the values and behaviours of our officers and staff. Public confidence exists across all of our 13 local policing divisions.

Policing in your local area

More than three quarters of the people who responded to Your Police told us that they feel safe in their local areas – an average of 79% of people said they felt safe, and this has remained high over the past year. However, we know that there are people who feel less safe for a variety of reasons and we are now working to take action based on your feedback.

• 62% of those who took part in Your Police told us that police are friendly and approachable;
• 29% of people said that the police listen to the concerns of local people; and,
• 21% said the police deal with local issues.

A large number of respondents said they ‘don’t know’ when asked about these measures. We are now working within our refreshed governance structures in the Service to enhance and expand our engagement within Scotland’s diverse communities. Our Public Confidence Governance Board is chaired by Assistant Chief Constable Emma Bond.

Concern about crime

36% of people told us their concern about crime had remained the same while 24% said their concern had increased a lot, and 30% said their concern has raised a little. Only 3% said it had decreased. We know that people who were recent victims or witnesses of crime and those who live in areas most affected by poverty have more concern about crime.

Generally, concerns have included: anti-social behaviour (particularly at nights and weekends), speeding and dangerous driving (specifically in rural areas), house break-ins, drug taking and dealing and wider vulnerability concerns about relatives and neighbours.

In November 2023 we launched Our Big Youth Conversation, a campaign that enabled more young people to participate in our survey to influence how we do things. Young Scots told us what they loved and what they thought needs to change. Their ideas and opinions are helping us to deliver effective policing and inform partnership working for young people, helping us create safe and well communities for everyone.

On what matters most to the public (from open-ended responses), constant themes included: visibility (a local presence), communicating and engaging with the public, and understanding the needs of our diverse communities.

Your Police continues to be the largest local policing survey of its kind in the UK. Responses have been reviewed regularly by senior police officers and have helped us act quickly in relation to emerging issues; helping shape our approaches to operational policing across Scotland.

We have compared our data with other national public surveys to ensure that Your Police continues to provide robust insights to support effective policing in communities throughout Scotland.

Five things we have done with your feedback

• Developed new approaches to night time and city centre or town centre policing to address areas of concern where people feel less safe.
• Continued to update our local partners on a regular basis, through local police scrutiny boards in each local authority area – using the data to design an appropriate policing response for local needs.
• Developed new partnerships in communities across Scotland, such as Friday Night Football in Dundee city centre, and local youth work in areas where young people seek positive opportunities to take part in their community.
• Developed and are piloting a new approach to community engagement with a learning package to support community police officers called ‘Your Police – Listening Forums’. This will be trialled in more communities in 2024-25 to address your concerns that local police are not listening and taking action on the issues that are important to you.
• Worked with our partners to continue to embed more participatory approaches so that we can work together within and with communities to solve local issues, such as more Participatory Budgeting in Inverness.

We have also enhanced the ways that we share your feedback internally so that your local policing teams are aware of what matters to you. We have developed insight dashboards and Local Area Commanders are using them to inform what they do locally. Thank you

We are grateful to all who participated in Your Police during 2023-24. Our Research and Insight team continue to review every response in detail and provide detailed reporting to senior management and the Scottish Police Authority (the body which helps ensure an effective and high-quality service).

We are enhancing our local and national approaches to community engagement and involving more people in more decisions about their police service in new ways. More information is in our projects section.

Further information: Any clarifications or questions about this update can be made by contacting the Research and Insight team:

InsightEngagement@scotland.police.uk

In April 2022, Police Scotland refreshed its local policing survey to gather views from Scotland’s diverse communities. This British Sign Language (BSL) version of Your Police 2022-2023 remained open throughout the year and helped us understand people’s opinions of policing in their local area, as well as tell us about any concerns regarding their area which was affecting their safety or wellbeing.

Your feedback via the survey has helped us ensure that our policing services in your community were high quality by supporting the communities we serve.

In total, we received 95 responses over 12 months, including nearly 300 free-text responses. 

The average public confidence level for the period April 2022 – March 2023 was 44%. This includes people who either ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that they have confidence in local police.

We learned that things which effect public confidence include police visibility and accessibility, community engagement and the values and behaviours of our officers and staff. We also know that events taking place in local areas that attracted a large police presence had an impact on public confidence. Public confidence exists across all of our 13 local policing divisions.

Policing in your local area

The majority of the people who responded to BSL Your Police told us that they feel safe in their local areas – an average of 76% of people said they felt safe and this has remained the high over the past year. However, we know that there are people who feel less safe for a variety of reasons and the Service is now working to take action based on your feedback.

• 72% of those who took part in Your Police told us that police are friendly and approachable;
• 37% of people said that the police listen to the concerns of local people; and,
• 26% said the police deal with local issues.

A large number of respondents said they ‘don’t know’ when asked about these measures. We are now working with our Public Confidence Governance Board to enhance and expand our engagement within Scotland’s diverse communities. This board is chaired by Assistant Chief Constable Emma Bond.

Concern about crime

31% of people told us their concern about crime had remained the same while 62% said their concern had increased. 2% said it had decreased. We know that people with disabilities and those who live in areas most affected by poverty have more concern about crime.

Generally, people’s concerns have included: antisocial behaviour (including at local beauty spots and public parks/greenspace), speeding and dangerous driving, house break-ins, drug taking and dealing and wider vulnerability concerns about relatives and neighbours. Greater engagement being required with children and young people, including those who support them - such as youth workers, teachers, and sports clubs - was also highlighted.

On what matters most to the public (from open-ended responses), constant themes included: visibility (a local presence), communicating and engaging with the public, and understanding the needs of diverse communities.

Your Police continues to be the largest of its kind in the UK to involve the public in a conversation about policing and their local community. Responses have been reviewed regularly by senior police officers and have helped us act quickly in relation to emerging issues; helping shape our approaches to operational policing across Scotland.

We have compared our data with other national public surveys to ensure that Your Police continues to provide robust insights to support effective and high quality policing in communities throughout Scotland.
 

Five things we have done with your feedback

Further, we have developed the ways that we share your feedback internally so that your local policing teams are aware of what matters to you. We have developed insight dashboards and local area commanders are using them to inform what they do locally. 

Your feedback has also shaped the Annual Police Plan 2023-24 and Local Police Plans 2023-26.

Thank you

We are grateful to all who participated in Your Police during 2022/23. Our Research and Insight team continue to review every response in detail and provide detailed reporting to senior management and the Scottish Police Authority (which is the body that helps ensure an effective and high-quality service).

Responses to Your Police will continue to feed into decision-making structures within Police Scotland on a regular basis. Police Scotland’s ‘Public Confidence Governance Board’ will build on the actions taken from the survey and continue to shape our approaches to improving public contact and engagement.

We are enhancing our local and national approaches to community engagement, and involving more people in more decisions about their police service in new ways. More information is in our projects section.

Further information: Any clarifications or questions about this update can be made by contacting the Research and Insight team:

InsightEngagement@scotland.police.uk