Approved Minute

WELCOME
Pauline Howie, Committee Chair welcomed attendees from the Authority, HMICS and Police Scotland.

APOLOGIES
There were no Members apologies.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST AND CONNECTIONS
There were no declarations of interest or connections.

DECISIONS ON TAKING BUSINESS IN PRIVATE (ITEMS 5 - 9)
In accordance with paragraph 20 of the SPA Standing Orders, the Committee agreed to consider items 5 – 9 in private.

DECISIONS TAKEN SINCE LAST MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE
There was no formal business conducted since the last meeting of the Committee.

RESOURCES COMMITTEE MINUTE FROM MEETING HELD ON 19 MARCH 2026 FOR APPROVAL
Members who had attended the meeting agreed the Minute from the Resources Committee held on 19 March 2026 was an accurate record of the meeting.

RESOURCES COMMITTEE ACTION LOG AND MATTERS ARISING
Members noted the Action Log updates and agreed the actions proposed for closure.

2025/26 PROVISIONAL YEAR END OUTTURN – LYNN BROWN
Members considered the report which provided an update on the provisional 2025/26 financial outturn position of the SPA and Police Scotland. These figures are still subject to finalisation and external audit; however, we do not anticipate any material changes. During discussion and in addition to the written report the following points were noted and discussed.

• Members considered a brief overview of the report and noted that the position remained broadly in line with previous reporting.
• It was confirmed there are no further significant changes to highlight that have emerged since the report was submitted and while no material changes are anticipated, the audit process will progress and complete in due course.
• The robust management of the budget throughout the year considering the significant financial challenges is recognised by the Committee and Members commended the organisational wide work of Police Scotland teams to deliver the reported position.
• Assurance was sought and received that all additional costs attributed to the visit of the President and the Vice President of the United States had been fully recovered by Police Scotland.
• The committee explored the way in which learning will be taken into future years given the effort required to manage significant variable factors such as officer numbers. Assurance was given that lessons have been learned and are being fed into the 2027/28 budget planning as well being a consideration of the medium-term financial planning.
• The Chief Financial Officer explained that discussions continue between Police Scotland and Scottish Government to explore a way that the cycle of officer recruitment and the resulting fluctuations in officer numbers can be better aligned with quarterly financial monitoring reports as there is currently a misalignment in the reporting so that future reporting is clearer and more reflective of the overall position.
• The Committee sought and received assurance that Police Scotland Finance colleagues work very closely with the Accounting and Control Team to ensure any audit issues that need to be considered are appropriately factored into pieces of work.
• Members noted there has been slippage in several legal cases in 2025/25 and from these likely settlements have been carried forward. Clarity was sought that there are appropriate plans in place to manage the risks in this regard. The Chief Financial Officer assured Members that these legal costs and other unfunded risks will be closely managed as the year progresses and will be reported to this committee.

Members noted the provisional outturn position for revenue, capital, and reform within the Finance Report.

2026/27 PERIOD 1 FINANCIAL MONITORING REPORT – LYNN BROWN
Members considered the report which provided an update on the financial position of the SPA and Police Scotland for period 1 (P1) of the financial year 2026-27. During discussion and in addition to the written report the following points were noted and discussed.

• Members considered an overview of the P1 report.
• The P1 spend is significantly lower than in previous years showing an underspend. This is in relation to overtime assumptions however it is expected that this will move to an overspend in P2 but overall, this will be a balance position for P1/2. Overtime continues to be closely monitored and managed by Police Scotland.
• The Committee Chair invited comment on any P2 insights and it was reported that some early spend of Capital was taking place and Reform spend was in line with budget.
• Reflecting on the management of the overtime budget, Members asked for some additional assurance about how this will be managed by Police Scotland. The Chief Financial Officer explained that overtime is based on seasonality and the budget is based on the various demands across the months. This is monitored closely through the Overtime Management Group and through this group, learning continues to be gathered. The CFO explained that a change in culture and awareness of the need to manage overtime robustly is being seen and this has been driven by the Management Group.
• The CFO assured Members there is strong governance around overtime and it is being considered holistically by the organisation taking areas like wellbeing, resource and officer numbers into consideration. This approach seeks to solve root causes rather than outcomes so that this can improve going forward.
• DCC Speirs added that operational demand being placed on policing is having the impact on overtime and, over the recent period, issues in Belfast and protests in Scotland have impacted on Police Scotland. Police Scotland is unable to flex resource to deal with those events in a way that won’t have adverse impact on overtime and Members were told this could continue into summer months. Notwithstanding these issues the DCC assured Members he was confident the arrangements in place to manage overtime are robust and will deliver.
• The prioritisation of reform projects was noted and Members sought additional assurance that arrangements are in place to ensure rigour around delivery within budget and timescale as well as processes to identify and track benefits.
• The Director of Transformation provided an update on work and assured Members that there will be rigour around processes to ensure projects deliver as expected and on schedule.
• DCC Smith explained that prioritisation will be part of the budget planning in future years and Members agreed this will be helpful to the work of the committee so that Members can understand the impact of budget decisions on the front line and how it all impacts on the delivery of the Chief Constable’s vison.
• The Chair asked that future reporting include additional detail in respect of how the risks to service delivery are being managed and the progress being made.

Members noted the contents of the report and the Finance Report and agreed the following action.
RES- 20260616-001: Additional information to be included in future report that gives oversight and assurance that the risks to service delivery are being managed and the progress being made.

FINANCIAL PLANNING & BUDGET STRATEGY
Members considered the report which provided the Committee with details of the Financial Planning and Budget Strategy. During discussion and in addition to the written report the following points were noted and discussed.
• Members considered an overview of the report which explained the effort to develop a framework for the development of the medium-term financial plan. It was explained that to demonstrate commitment to medium-term financial planning and the Best Value recommendations, this had been brought to the committee now for early sight.
• The Committee welcomed early sight of this report given the need to develop Medium Term financial planning and for this to align to delivery of the Chief Constables vision and workforce plan.
• The Chief Financial Officer highlighted her concerns regarding flat cash and the implications have been set out for this.
• Members asked for an understanding of Police Scotland’s ambition in terms of savings/efficiencies/capabilities and what the ambition is in terms of driving as much efficiency as possible. Clarity was sought on what conversations were taking place between Finance Team and Police Scotland budget holders and external partners. DCC Smith referenced the wider public sector reform agenda citing digital transformation across the Criminal Justice Sector. The DCC confirmed Police Scotland is working with partners and there is a lot more work to be done with partner organisations.
• The DCC explained that SG is keen to support collaborative work and discussions will continue to explore what this can look like. The DCC is encouraged by early discussions and feels there is some real momentum behind this across the public sector to deliver.
• The DCC also highlighted that there is a need to develop the way organisations work collaboratively in the preventative space and there is some real interest in this area too given the shared budget challenges of partners. The DCC explained that challenges exist in the funding being by organisation rather than by ‘preventative issue’ and there will be effort to explore this approach and how it could be improved for better outcomes. The Committee heard from the DCC that she believes there is good work ongoing and she hopes to be able to update soon with more detail in respect of how these impacts on financial planning for future years.
• The CFO added that reform is not only about cashable savings and Police Scotland is committed to continued reform but this will not always generate cashable savings. The organisation is building capacity and being clear about measuring and how they will use that capacity in future is important and therefore at the forefront of Police Scotland’s planning.
• Seeking clarity on the timelines for the approval of the Medium-Term Financial Plan, the CFO suggested an additional meeting of the Resources Committee may be required in advance of Authority approval in September.
Members noted the report.

Q4 TRANSFORMATION REPORT & BENEFITS REPORT – BREEDA MCAFFREY
Members considered the report which provided an update in relation to the ongoing Police Scotland Transformation Portfolio and delivery of benefits. During discussion and in addition to the written report the following points were noted and discussed.

• Members considered an overview of the report and areas of progress were highlighted to the Committee. Progress was report in relation to the Body Word Video project, Master Data Management project and the National Inquiry Module.
• The additional resource in the Transformation team was noted and Members heard this will help drive forward activity.
• The Committee is keen to understand how the governance arrangements will provide the Authority with assurance that thought is given during the planning stage to test that timescales are realistic, budgets are realistic and the anticipated benefits are identified and agreed. Members are also seeking to be assured that projects are owned at an appropriate level and that the owners are accountable for delivery against the Business Case.
• Police Scotland confirmed that the addition of extra resource will strengthen and allow improved delivery and the governance arrangements are in place to support this.
• Members fed back that the paper was interesting but, in places, difficult to understand because there is a lot of granular detail. It is not clear to the Committee which projects are the priority and this is relevant given the budget constraints and competing priorities for reform money.
• In response to a question about which projects Police Scotland want to focus on and which projects could be de-prioritised if needed, it was explained that all projects are a priority to deliver the 2030 Vision however there could be opportunity to resource differently but this would have impacts given project interdependencies. The Director plans to be able to share more details on prioritisation with the committee at the August meeting.
• Reflecting on the key themes of challenges across projects, a question was asked about how these lessons have been shared beyond individual teams in Police Scotland and how this is driving changes in behaviour going forward.
• The Director of Transformation provided assurance that the Police Scotland Leadership Team consider lessons learned and effort was being put in to make sure learning is considered in the planning of projects.
• Members heard that there is a better understanding in the market of Police Scotland’s requirements and this was supporting the planning but it is also recognised there is always opportunity to get better.
• The Chair thanked attendees for their contribution and welcomed the offer from the Director of Transformation to provide a clear understanding of project priorities and details of how the committee will be able to take assurance that benefits are being diligently identified, captured and tracked as we go forward.

Members noted the report.

The remaining items were taken in private.
End.