Status of all recommendations

Police Scotland should review the role of officers involved in risk assessment and safety planning for domestic abuse incidents to provide national consistency, based on the optimum model, and ensure that they are given the appropriate training and support.

Police Scotland should:

1. Ensure that all domestic abuse training incorporates an element of lived experience of victims.
2. As a matter of priority, introduce a programme of mandatory CPD on key topics for all operational officers, supervisors and managers. Key topics for the first year should include: DASA offences, to improve officers’ understanding and use of the legislation; trauma informed practices, to improve engagement with victims; and lived experience of victims, to address problematic attitudes and behaviours.

Police Scotland and the SPA need to ensure that investigative opportunities for digital evidence capture are improved and maximised for domestic abuse offences.

Police Scotland must, as a priority, introduce a robust system for allocation and monitoring progression of domestic abuse investigation packages at local, regional and national level to ensure there are clear channels of ownership and to improve service to victims. With the introduction of the new national crime recording system, Police Scotland should introduce a consistent national standard for domestic abuse packages, to include storage in an accessible and auditable format.

Police Scotland should develop and implement effective processes for communication with victims of domestic abuse that are victim focused and include acceptable timeframes for providing updated information. Such processes should include clear recording of preferred methods of contact, which can be accessed by relevant personnel.

Police Scotland should ensure that the cadre of trained SOLOs across the organisation is sufficient to meet demand and to ensure the wellbeing of these officers.

Police Scotland should incorporate the findings and recommendations from our Strategic Workforce Planning Assurance Review in its approach to the Public Protection Development Programme. It should review its structures holistically and for its response to domestic abuse:

• Establish an in-depth and accurate picture of current and forecasted demand levels
• Set out clearly defined service level standards to meet victims’ needs
• Establish the resource level needed to meet demand
• Implement the best model nationally and locally to effect the change needed to support the concept of investigative ownership and continuity of contact/engagement with victims
• Ensure the resources within that model are empowered and have the requisite skills and training to equip them in the complex area of domestic abuse

Police Scotland and the SPA should put in place measures to monitor progress against the areas for development outlined in this thematic review.