Organising an event
Police Scotland recognises that public safety is the most important thing in all event planning and is the main responsibility of event organisers, the owners of the land on which the event is being held, and local authorities if the event is held on the roadway supported by partner agencies.
It is important that event organisers, landowners, and local authorities planning an event notify Police Scotland at the earliest opportunity so that we can provide the right support, and to do this a notification form is available.
This form asks for basic information about the proposed event and the contact details of the event organiser. The event organiser should complete this form and send it, preferably by email, to one of the three area addresses on the form (East, West or North). If it cannot be sent by email, it can be posted to Police Scotland or handed in to any police station.
Please email the relevant Emergency, Event and Resilience Planning Unit for your area requesting the Form 107-001.
For the West of Scotland email OSD Events West.
For the East and North of Scotland email OSD Events.
What happens next?
When the notification form is received, it will be checked to establish what level of police support will be needed to help the event organiser run the event safely. Once checked, the event will be planned at local, central or national level and the appointed event planner will contact the event organiser.
How much will it cost?
The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 allows Police Scotland to charge for the provision of requested police services.
These are based on two important principles:
- Police Scotland can only recover the cost of the provided services – the charges are not about making a profit;
- No person or organisation should profit at the expense of Police Scotland – Police Scotland is responsible for proper stewardship of public funds.
When the organiser’s plans are made known, the event will be checked against a series of criteria to see how much the provision of police services will cost. This assessment will indicate full or no cost recovery.
It is important to note that there are many events for which Police Scotland will not charge for its services.
Generally, the more commercial an event is, the more likely it will be to attract full cost recovery. Purely charitable or community events are less likely to be charged for but, in some cases, charitable events are arranged on a commercial basis and this would be taken into account in the overall charge assessment.
How are charges set?
The Scottish Police Authority reviews charges for the provision of police services, and these are applied each year on 1 April. These charges are reviewed in line with guidance provided by the Scottish Public Finance Manual.
VAT will be accounted for at the appropriate rate according to the tax point date, in line with the HM Revenue and Customs Public Sector VAT guidance (VATGPB5270 Police Authorities: specific activities: special services). Policing services are generally subject to VAT except where a service is required by statute or authority direction.
The current standard rate of VAT (correct at the time of publishing) is 20%. Certain police services are outside of the scope of the UK VAT system and no VAT is charged on these goods or services. Full advice should be sought from the Finance Department prior to finalising cost recovery documentation.
More information required?
If you require more information on planning an event, please send an email to the relevant Emergency, Event and Resilience Planning Unit for your area.
For the West of Scotland email OSD Events West.
For the East and North of Scotland email OSD Events.
If you are uncertain within which policing area you reside or where the event is proposed to take place, please check the Your Community section of the Police Scotland website.
Alternatively, if you wish to discuss your event, please dial 101 (Police Scotland non emergency number) and ask to speak to someone in the Emergency, Event and Resilience Planning Unit, Operational Support Division.
