Introduction

The Scottish Police Authority (The Authority) is a non-departmental public body based across various locations in Scotland.

We aim to build a workforce which reflects the society we serve, and to create an inclusive culture which values and respects diversity. Each year we publish a summary of the employment monitoring data we have collated and considered within our Employment Monitoring Analysis reports. This publication continues our reporting process which supplements the key insights included within the Joint Authority and Police Scotland Equality and Diversity Mainstreaming and Outcomes Progress reports which can be found here. 

This report follows largely the same format as previous reports and assists the Authority in regularly analysing monitoring information. This helps to identify any trends and required actions to support the delivery of our Joint Equality Outcomes which reflect the journey we are on in partnership with Police Scotland.

Through our workforce diversity monitoring, we continue to demonstrate our commitment to understanding, valuing and incorporating difference to ensure a workplace that is fair, equitable and inclusive for all.   

The data presented in this report cover the overall workforce profile as well as data recruitment, retention and development.  For this report, promotion refers to any internal member of staff who successfully applies for a role at a higher grade.

In relation to pay, the Authority and Police Scotland currently report on pay gaps for disability, ethnicity, sex and sexual orientation. Details of these are included within the report.

There are gaps in our datasets where a proportion of our staff data are unknown, either due to incomplete information on our system or an active choice made by staff to withhold their personal data. Work to understand low disclosure rates is an ongoing priority.

In addition, not all protected characteristics have been presented within this report due to current system limitations.

Previous year’s reports can be found on our website.

The Authority has a specific legal duty to gather and use data in relation to recruitment, development and retention split by relevant protected characteristic.  We publish this information to demonstrate our commitment to developing an inclusive workplace and our legal responsibilities against the three aims of the general equality duty, to give due regard to the need to:

Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under the Act.

Advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it.

Foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it.

As part of our obligations under the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) we are required to consider how policy and procedural changes may impact colleagues with protected characteristics. We currently carry out Equality and Human Rights Impact Assessments (EQHRIA’s) and make continued efforts to fulfil this obligation through our Corporate Equalities and Public Duties Working Group and Forensic Services EDI Subgroup. Providing staff with sufficient training in EQHRIA’s is a priority to enable the embedding of a consistent process which enables an effective approach mitigating barriers for staff, stakeholders and the public. 

This report focuses only on employees who work directly for the Authority. As of 31 March 2024, 654 individuals (headcount) were employed by the Authority. In comparison to the figure reported in 2023, this is an increase of 18 (headcount). Individuals employed by the Authority are spread across Corporate and Forensic Service functions.

Where available, data from the most recent Scottish Census (2022) has been included to enable comparison.

Please note the following when interpreting the data presented in this report:

Information is published in accordance with GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 and so does not identify individuals.

Low numbers of staff within any characteristic group have been combined to protect anonymity.

For some characteristics, this report is based on relatively small data sets which makes robust analysis challenging.  It also means that small changes could show a significant impact in terms of percentage increase/decrease.

A comparison of data over the past two years shows the percentage of workforce data known to us has increased across most of the protected characteristics. The percentage of data which individuals chose not to disclose has also decreased slightly meaning more people have shared information with the organisation. The exception to this relates to the protected characteristic of disability, which has seen an increase in those who have chosen not to say whether or not they consider themselves to have a disability.

We know that better data will improve our understanding of the diversity of our workforce and the impact of our activities on different groups. We will continue to encourage an increase in disclosure rates by providing and promoting a safe and supportive environment for our staff, being clear on who has access to the information and how it is used.