Who We Are

The Scottish Police Authority is independent of both the Scottish Government and policing. It is the primary governance body for policing in Scotland, and was established as a public body on 1 April 2013 by the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012. It was set up to hold the Chief Constable to account; promote, support and oversee improvement in policing. It is also responsible for the management and delivery of Forensic Services in Scotland and Independent Custody Visiting Scotland.

In this section, find out more about the Authority’s priorities, the Board and the Leadership team.

Who We Are

What We Do

The Scottish Police Authority is responsible for maintaining policing. It has four specific areas of responsibility:

promoting the policing principles

supporting continuous improvement

keeping policing under review

holding the Chief Constable to account.

This section tells you in outline what the Authority does.

What We Do

Published: 31 July 2023

Defence Access Policy

Category: Reports

Topic: Forensic Services

Defence Access Policy (pdf, .33MB )

Report Summary

The SPA Forensic Services Defence Access policy has been developed to ensure that defence agents and independent forensic science experts have consistent, fair and transparent access to productions and specific information held by the organisation.

Related Publications

The documents below are related by Topic and are the most recently published

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FOI 2024/25-002 - Knife examined in Luke Mitchell/Jody Jones

Published: 15 May 2024

Forensic Services

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HMICS Assurance Review of Forensic Toxicology Provision – Improvement Plan and timeline - 7 May 2024

Published: 01 May 2024

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Forensic Services Director’s Report - 7 May 2024

Published: 30 April 2024

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FOI 2023/24-112 - Rape cases involving sanitary pads

Published: 26 April 2024

Forensic Services

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Defence Access Policy

Report Summary

Related Publications

FOI 2024/25-002 - Knife examined in Luke Mitchell/Jody Jones

HMICS Assurance Review of Forensic Toxicology Provision – Improvement Plan and timeline - 7 May 2024

Forensic Services Director’s Report - 7 May 2024

FOI 2023/24-112 - Rape cases involving sanitary pads