Strong teamwork at heart of policing in Scotland
Police Scotland officers and staff have highly positive views of their teams, a workforce survey of more than 11,000 people has found.
Teamwork scored very highly across statements including that they “can be relied on to help” (87% agreement), that they “work together effectively” (87%), and they “support each other” (87%).
Police officers and staff also agreed that “making a difference in society was more important” than their personal achievements (70%) and that they “stand up for the rights of others even if it means they will be criticised” (85%).
Respondents said their teams were “a positive and inclusive environment” (81%) however a statement that teams have “sufficient people resource” scored very low (27%).
Officers and staff said Police Scotland is “clear on what is expected of me in terms of how I behave” (84%) however the Service scored very low or low on statements including “acts on feedback from the workforce” (17%) and “inspires me to do the best in my job” (36%).
One in five said they had personally experience harassment, bullying or discrimination in the workplace in the last 12 months, while over half (52%) said they’d been assaulted or verbally abused by the public.
Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton said: “The Chief Constable has consistently highlighted the skill, commitment, goodwill and professionalism, our officers, staff, and volunteers demonstrate as they deliver a challenging and essential public service for our communities.
“The survey gave our people a voice and the results can help all police leaders to deliver positive change. There are areas of real positivity, including the strong ethos of teamwork and the commitment to making a difference in society, underlining the huge value our people provide for communities.
“We also recognise the challenges. The onus is on police leaders to advocate for appropriate resources for policing and deliver change that supports frontline policing to deliver for the public.
“We’ve set out our vision of safer communities, less crime, supported victims and a thriving workforce and our first business plan which outlines the steps we’re already taking to achieve these ambitions.
“In the coming weeks and months, we’ll work to understand these results more fully and take action at national and local levels. The Chief Constable has committed to yearly surveys, and it is important action leads to better experiences for our colleagues.”
The survey, conducted by Progressive Partnership, opened on 1 July 2024 for a period of eight weeks. In total, 11,424 responses were received which is an overall response rate of 51%. This is an increase of 20 percentage points on the 2021 survey.
The survey results will be presented and discussed at a public meeting of the Scottish Police Authority Board in Glasgow on Thursday, 28 November.
You can read the results of the workforce survey and the appendix. Please note both documents were produced by Progressive Partnership and may not be fully accessible.
