« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
Scottish Criminal Record Office Primary Inspection 2004
6. Results
6.1 SCRO currently produces a number of performance monitoring documents which cover the areas of activity, personnel, establishment and budget. These are compiled monthly using data which, for the most part, are drawn from existing IT systems, though some are retrieved manually. The automated systems have built-in checks to ensure data accuracy. Further checks on robustness are incorporated into the processes of data retrieval and report production. Designated individuals are responsible for accessing specific data sets, the report compiler verifies consistency with past data and critical comment is sought from heads of bureaux prior to formal publication.
6.2 The reports contain a mixture of data. Some of the figures relate to more descriptive, internal performance information which is of particular use to internal supervisory or managerial staff. Other sections present statistics on wider performance indicators and targets which are more conducive to external scrutiny. Accordingly, the reports themselves are aimed at various internal and external audiences, e.g. CPS Programme Board, the Scottish Executive and forces as well as internal heads of bureaux and supervisors.
6.3 That said, the format and content of these documents continue to change as feedback is received from their readership. For example, it is envisaged that the 'Managing Our Key Performance' document will eventually become a more streamlined, core, corporate paper. It is further intended to produce this on a quarterly basis, to make it more chart, as opposed to tabular based and, to make it more widely and publicly available by reproducing it on the SCRO website. Additionally, smaller and more detailed reports covering individual areas of SCRO activity, such as those already being produced for Disclosure Scotland, are planned. These, it is felt, would be more appropriate to internal monitoring of performance. The recently appointed business analyst has responsibility for taking these plans forward and automating the new processes.
6.4 The quantitative performance data presented in Figure 14 have been taken from SCRO's monthly performance report, 'Managing Our Key Performance'. Normally, in this chapter, HMIC presents information on agency performance against core business areas and any targets therein, and against performance over the previous five years. However a number of areas presently lack targets - though the performance team has indicated that this is currently under consideration. Additionally, consistent performance information over time is not available in all areas. For this reason, the multigraph below presents current SCRO performance against the previous year only. Points falling inside the blue circle indicate performance in the desired direction.
6.5 Overall, SCRO performance on the criteria shown here looks positive. Since 2002-03, CHS and DNA markers have risen, as have the number of disclosure applications received and registered bodies involved. The number of Basic Disclosure applications rose from 2,358 in 2002-03 to 176,844 in the following year - the difference being too large to portray in the multigraph.
6.6 The proportion of fingerprint tenprint forms received electronically has risen, and the rejection rate for poor quality submission has fallen. The availability of the three key electronic systems, i.e. CHS, AFR and PNCI, remains extremely high.
6.7 Where performance is less positive is in relation to the percentage of fingerprint cases identified, down by nearly five percentage points, although the number of cases has remained stable over the last two years. According to SCRO, this decline in performance is attributed to a fall in cheque fraud cases received for comparison. Another performance indicator, the time taken to process disclosure applications, has more than doubled over the previous year and this is explained at paragraph 5.55.
« Previous | Contents | Next »