Police Scotland plans to invest nearly £300 million in its IT infrastructure over the next decade.

With many outdated systems, the service said, efforts to integrate may not be possible. Investment proposals will be presented to the Scottish Police Authority this week.

The service recently announced plans to spend more than £21 million on an “urgent” mobile technology upgrade for officers struggling to fight crime with outdated equipment.

Modernisation

Proposals by Police Scotland outline the funding required to modernise the service and provide “officers and staff the tools they need to protect the public in the 21st century.”

Investment, it said, will also generate savings and public service improvements for the wider criminal justice systems. In a paper prepared by the force, it was claimed that officers are still using paper notebooks as part of their processes, then typing information into different systems.

The investment comes at a difficult time for police services, according to Deputy Chief Constable Fiona Taylor, as pressure on public services is “immense”.

Taylor commented: “The present situation is unsustainable. The pressure on our officers and staff to work around the failings in our technology and meet the new threats will move beyond their ability to cope.

“It also has a detrimental impact on the public and our colleagues in other parts of the criminal justice system. At a time when the pressure on public services is immense, we are operating an economically inefficient police service.”

Despite a lack of investment in technology, she said, Police Scotland has still delivered to the best of its ability.

“There has been significant under-investment in technology in policing since well before 2013,” she said. “And we’ve not been able to make use of some of the investment that has been available.

“Despite this, our officers and staff have continued to deliver to the best of their ability by making huge personal commitments to get the job done.”

Challenges Posed

An outline business case, set to be put forward by Police Scotland, highlights the scale of the proposed investment. It shows that many IT systems are out of date, are not joined up and cannot be upgraded.

Additionally, it suggests that policing is faced with growing threats from “highly sophisticated organised criminals” who “ruthlessly exploit advances in technology.”

Due to tech restrictions, officers cannot share with, or receive timely information, from partner agencies, it noted, which could significantly help the victim of a crime or vulnerable people. Officers can spend hours trying to find or contact the appropriate partner agency or person to speak to.

The business case, Police Scotland said, has been developed as part of an initiative to implement a 10-year strategy to “meet the future demands on policing.”

Commenting on this, DCC Taylor added: “The business case features a number of projects that have already been put in place by other police services in the UK and around the world. It is proven technology that Police Scotland needs now.

“We’ll give our officers mobile devices and access to integrated and up-to-date information on the move, allowing them to spend more time in the communities they serve. We’ll also give them better technology to capture evidence, speeding up the criminal justice system and making the process simpler for the public.

“And it will put our officers back on the streets, allowing them to work on crime prevention and community-based policing to keep people safe.”

The outline business case will be considered by the Scottish Police Authority at its board meeting on Thursday, 27 September.