Marischal College Front Counter Proposals Consultation

Overview

We would like your feedback on proposed changes to Police Scotland public counter provision in Aberdeen.  

Police Scotland Public Enquiry & Support Assistants (PESA) are an essential part of our workforce, playing a key role in the delivery of an effective and efficient service to local communities through the support they provide to both our officers and members of the public.

In 2022, as part of our North-East Division Integration Project, all PESA posts from our previous HQ, Queen Street, Aberdeen were transferred from outlying police stations to co-locate with Aberdeen City Council’s main public counter at Marischal College.

In line with our 2030 vision for policing in Scotland we are now reviewing whether current PESA provision within Aberdeen meets the changing needs of our community.

Our research shows that members of the public typically attend Marischal College to engage with Police Scotland, between 7am and 8pm, with footfall reducing significantly between 10pm and 7am.

We recognise that an absence of free and accessible parking in the vicinity of Marischal College, coupled with the police public counter only being visibly open during the same hours as the Council's public counter may put off people attending.

Through our 2030 vision we aim to improve public contact through:

• Ensuring the public can contact us in a way that best meets their needs, responding effectively when they contact us for help.
• Using data and service user feedback to design and deliver our services.
• Investing in our people, ensuring we have the right workforce mix and an operating environment which meets the needs of a modern and high performing public contact service.

To deliver an enhanced service to the communities within Aberdeen, we are now proposing the opening of an additional public counter at Kittybrewster Police Station with staffing being delivered through redeployment of several PESA’s currently based at Marischal College. Hours of operation at both locations would be 7am – midnight, seven days a week.

Whilst this proposal would result in removal of overnight public counter provision in Aberdeen, in future, members of the public would be able to choose which location they wish to attend either based on their geographic location or travel preference with Kittybrewster offering ample free parking and is well connected with public transport.

Police stations will continue to be staffed 24/7 by Police Officers and this proposal only reflects the times the that public counters would be open to the public. 

Why your views matter

Involving the public, communities, and partners in the way we do things is vital if we are to maintain public confidence in policing.  We want to listen to everyone and take your views on our proposals into account.

We would like your feedback on our proposals.  We will use your feedback, along with other research and evidence, to develop and shape the final plan.

Please note: we will be seeking feedback on these proposals from police officers and staff separately before any decisions are made.