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

Forensic Services

This section tells you about Forensic Services.

The Scottish Police Authority is responsible for providing forensic services to the criminal justice sector in Scotland including: Police Scotland; the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscals Service (COPFS); and the Police Investigations and Reviews Commissioner (PIRC).

Who We Are

There are 600 highly trained and skilled scientists and staff in Forensic Services. They operate from five main laboratory sites. These sites are at Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, as well as the Scottish Crime Campus in Gartcosh. Scene Examination teams are based throughout Scotland.

Find out more about Who We Are

What We Do

Forensic Services provides the whole service from the crime scene, through search, recovery, and analysis, to the court, reporting evidence. This ‘integrated provision’ ensures impartiality and integrity – key values in the criminal justice system. There is a ‘sterile corridor’ between Forensic Services and Police Scotland.

Find out more about What We Do

How We Work

Forensic Services aims at the highest standard of quality and consistency in all aspects of the work it carries out. It performs inspection activities, and carries out tests in accordance with customers’ requirements, and fully validated methods, while maintaining the test facility’s economic viability.

Find out more about How We Work