5 Information Technology

Scottish Police Information Systems/Information Technology (IS/IT) Strategy

1. ACPOS has expressed its full support for the Scottish Police IS/IT Strategy (SPIS) which is based on a collaborative approach to projects and aims to utilise expertise within forces. Since last year an organisational structure to manage the implementation of the strategy has been agreed and implemented and this is vital to its success. Work has begun on the development of individual systems and Strathclyde Police and Northern Constabulary, aided by the central SPIS team based at the Scottish Police College, are developing software for the pioneer firearms and licensing system. The IS/IT Co-ordinating Committee continues to work towards identifying development priorities. The year 2000 is a major issue affecting decisions on current force systems and future SPIS projects. Support for SPIS reflects co-operation between ACPOS and other bodies over the development of IT within the Scottish criminal justice system.

IT Thematic Report

2. Funding is a crucial element in ensuring that police forces derive full operational advantage from their use of information technology. Repeatedly as I inspect forces I find committed staff working relentlessly to develop information systems, but with a level of staffing and a mix of skills which are inadequate to address satisfactorily the demands placed on them. Coupled with the difficulties in capital funding (to which I made particular reference in my report on Strathclyde Police last year and which have not been eased by the funding arrangements for 1998/99), forces, in co-operation with The Scottish Office, must work to improve the balance of resources needed to ensure a satisfactory IT infrastructure.

3. Inspections have identified a sensible move to integrate IT and communications support services within forces. But while good progress is being made in a number of areas there is still evidence of some forces committing considerable money and effort to core IT systems which are not meeting the needs of the organisation, and in some instances are simply generating work. These are systems introduced after inadequate consideration, analysis and planning and without the necessary rigours of sound project management, and it is my sincere hope that my forthcoming IT thematic report will provide a blueprint for forces to follow in providing a tighter framework for system development.

4. Next to staff costs, police forces generally spend more money on IT systems than on anything else. While IT is always the focus of considerable attention during the routine cycle of inspections, the development of SPIS and other changes in an area which never stands still, have created an environment which is worthy of review. The IT thematic inspection owed much to the expert assistance provided by HMIC (England & Wales) and looked at the way forces and central services specify, acquire, test and deploy IT systems and the intention of the review is to improve service delivery through the spread of good practice and the early identification of common causes of difficulty. The report will be published shortly and already forces are more aware of HMIC's expectations in relation to:-

• IT strategy and business planning at tactical level;
• investment appraisal and business cases;
• procurement and contracts;
• programme and project management; and
• data protection, IT security issues and the year 2000 problem.

5. PNC Compliance Audits of all Scottish forces are now carried out by HMIC (England and Wales), on my behalf, consistent with HMIC's cycle of inspections.

Public Safety Radio Communications Project

6. The Public Safety Radio Communications Project (PSRCP), overseen by the Police Information Technology Organisation (PITO), which aims to identify the successor to current radio systems and promises to provide state of the art digital trunked radio facilities for all UK forces, continues despite the less than ideal emergence of a single tender. A consortium headed by British Telecom was awarded the Project Definition Study (PDS) contract in October 1997 and this stage is due to be completed soon.

7. As mentioned in my last report the question of affordability, coverage and timescale occupies the minds of Scottish chief officers and I am pleased to acknowledge the efforts being made in a number of forces to come to terms with the issues associated with future communications facilities for the service. Irrespective of the decision of Scottish forces to pursue PSRCP or not, when a clearer understanding of the technical feasibility and affordability of the project is available on completion of the PDS, there is a need to replace current radio systems which have operational limitations. In the meantime inspections reveal forces pursuing a standstill care and maintenance approach to radio systems which is sensible in the light of the proposed changes. The replacement of Scottish force radio systems is envisaged to be in 2004/2005 and tough and well considered decisions will have to be made soon if satisfactory development is to be realised.

Integration of Scottish Criminal Justice Information System (ISCJIS)

8. Co-operation between different agencies involved in the Scottish criminal justice system is hugely important in ensuring efficiency and effectiveness. The Scottish Office led project, ISCJIS, applies particularly to the advantages to be gained by working towards an integrated IS/IT strategy.

9. Despite some examples of incompatibility which forces must address, the link to allow the police to communicate reports electronically to Procurator Fiscal offices throughout the country is now well established and a pilot scheme is anticipated soon between police (including British Transport Police) and the Scottish Children Reporters Administration (SCRA). Planned projects will bring the Courts, Prisons, Social Work, DVLA and SCRO fully into the project and I am delighted with the key role played by forces in allowing this laudable project to make good progress.

HMIC

10. Since the early 1990s the Inspectorate has made use of a computerised Matrix of Force Indicators adapted from a system developed for HMIC (England and Wales). The matrix provided statistical information which served to inform and support the inspection process. The system has now reached the end of its useful life and has been succeeded by an in-house application devised and implemented by The Scottish Office Business Support Unit. The new system has been designed to meet the specific needs of the Inspectorate and will be developed and supported by Scottish Office staff. It is planned to make the invaluable statistical information on forces held on this system more widely available to the relevant government departments and the service as a whole and development work is continuing apace.