Report Summary
A Public Briefing summarising Police Scotland's Trauma-Informed Practice. Published in May 2025.
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Upcoming Legislation Supporting Trauma-Informed Practice
The Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill was presented to the Scottish Parliament in April 2023.
It is currently at Stage 3 of the process to decide if it should become an Act. Once enacted, the Bill would put trauma-informed practice on a statutory footing.
The Bill amends the Victims and Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2014 by requiring Police Scotland’s Chief Constable, among others, to regard the following additional principle when carrying out functions in relation to victims and witnesses:
“That, during and after the investigation and proceedings, a victim should be treated in a way that accords with trauma-informed practice.” The Bill defines “trauma-informed practice” as “… a means of operating that:
- Recognises that a person may have experienced trauma.
- Understands the effects which trauma may have on the person, including how trauma may affect any evidence given by the person, and based on that understanding, involves adapting and implementing processes and practices to —
- seek to avoid, or minimise the risk of, exposing the person to any recurrence of past trauma or to further trauma;
- seek to avoid, or minimise the risk of, negatively impacting the person’s recovery from trauma;
- enable the person to participate effectively in court proceedings.
