| Introduction |
| 1. All
Scottish police forces are inspected on a three year
cycle. In the first year, a comprehensive Primary
inspection of management and operational functions takes
place, from which her Majesty's Chief Inspector of
Constabulary (HMCIC) may make recommendations on matters
which he considers that the force needs to address. This
is normally followed by a response from the Chief
Constable and an action plan to develop those aspects of
the primary report which the force has agreed to
progress. In the following year, a Review inspection is
carried out which examines the progress made in
addressing the recommendations, together with any other
significant changes or developments that have occurred in
the interim. In the third year, HMCIC visits the force to
discuss any matters of importance following the Review
inspection. Primary and Review inspection reports are
published. |
| 2. In
October 1998 a Review inspection of Northern Constabulary
was carried out under the direction of Her Majesty's
Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Sir William Sutherland
QPM, by the Assistant Inspector of Constabulary, Mr
Graham Power, and Her Majesty's Lay Inspector of
Constabulary, Mr Graham Harcus, assisted by
Superintendent Patricia Jenkins. |
| 3. A Primary
inspection of Northern Constabulary had been conducted by
HMCIC in May 1997. The published report made 15 main
recommendations as well as a number of observations on
issues which HMCIC felt required to be addressed. The
Primary inspection had been conducted in a period of
transition, with the Chief Constable, Mr William
Robertson, having recently taken command of the force; it
also followed the conclusion of a lengthy enquiry into a
serious rift amongst former senior managers. It was noted
at that time that the Chief Constable was developing a
philosophy of management based on a model which had been
successfully applied in a previous force and that the
force was going through a period of considerable change
with all the attendant anxiety. |
| 4. The first
step in the Review inspection process was to gather
information. All forces supply statistical information
annually to Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in
a standard format, and this is fed into a computerised
database, which allows comparative analysis of data. HMIC
also asked the force to supply a written response to a
comprehensive list of questions based mainly on the
recommendations and good practice advice contained in the
Primary Inspection Report. A staff officer from HMIC then
spent time in the force visiting and speaking to a
cross-section of police and support staff in divisional
and departmental posts. All this formed the basis for
briefing the Assistant Inspector and Her Majesty's Lay
Inspector of Constabulary prior to the formal Review
inspection taking place. |
| 5. The
Review inspection, in October 1998, revisited the force
17 months after the Primary inspection with the objective
of assessing progress in consequence of the Primary
report and to look at any significant current issues. The
management of the change process within the organisation
was a dominant theme throughout the Inspection. |
| 6. Visits
were made to Headquarters departments, operational and
support services and command areas by day and night.
Interviews were held with staff throughout the
organisation, including the Staff Associations. The
Assistant Inspector of Constabulary met the Convenor of
the Joint Police Board, Local Authority Chief Executives,
senior local government officers and elected councillors. |
| 7. The
report represents the collective views of HMIC and
provides an informed assessment of the force based on the
professional judgement of those who participated in the
Inspection. By its nature a Review inspection has to
concentrate on those aspects of the force's performance
which had been identified at the time of the Primary
inspection as requiring some attention. It does not
therefore represent a comprehensive account of all the
activities of Northern Constabulary. |
| 8. During
the Inspection HM Inspectors were afforded the full
co-operation of the Constabulary and are grateful to
those members of the force, elected representatives and
public officials who took the time to share their views
in the honest and open manner which typified the style of
the force and its local communities |
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