Police Scotland implements new community policing model

Police Scotland is implementing a new community policing model designed to provide more dependable appointments and faster investigations for victims and witnesses. The model establishes clearer distinctions between the roles of response officers and community officers, while introducing a dedicated community investigations team and additional community police officers.

Regions such as Forth Valley, Fife, Tayside, Highland and Islands, Argyll and West Dunbartonshire, Edinburgh, Renfrewshire, and Inverclyde are already utilizing the approach. Early results indicate improved reliability in keeping local policing appointments and faster progression of non-emergency incident reports, which has also reduced pressure on response officers.

Despite these improvements, Chief Constable Jo Farrell noted that community officers are still frequently redirected to support emergency responses and police events. To address this, Farrell has requested government support to add 350 officers to community teams in the coming years to ensure they can focus on crime prevention and community cohesion.