Inspectors raise concerns over detainee care in police custody centres in Scotland

Inspectors have criticised Police Scotland for its ‘lack of pace’ in addressing key issues affecting detainee care at custody centres.

A number of recent reviews by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) and Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) have highlighted issues at police custody facilities across the country.

Inspections from over the past two years have noted concerns in areas including record keeping, custody centre staffing and training, delayed releases, and disparities between the risk assessments carried out for detainees and the corresponding care plans put in place.

During their latest custody inspection in the Forth Valley divisional area, staff from HMICS and HIS found several issues duplicating those already highlighted.

HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Craig Naylor, said rather than repeating the recommendations for improvement previously given to Police Scotland, he would like to see them act swiftly to address recurring themes.

Mr Naylor said: “As part of our joint custody inspection programme, we have recently published seven reports relating to custody centres across Scotland where we have assessed the treatment of, and conditions for, individuals being detained.

“In this latest custody report we have made no new recommendations regarding custody centre operations for Police Scotland.

“Instead, we have outlined our concerns regarding several issues which, despite previous recommendations made in our recent reports, were also evident during this inspection.

“The fact these issues are still ongoing elevates our concern regarding a lack of pace in addressing previous recommendations with national relevance.”

Inspectors from HMICS and HIS carried out an onsite review of the custody centre at Falkirk Police Station in February 2025.

As part of the inspection, HMICS staff also reviewed the Police Scotland National Custody System (NCS) and examined a sample of 40 records from those of the 383 detainees processed at the custody centre during November 2024.

Inspectors assessed the physical environment, including the quality of cells, and observed key processes and procedures relevant to police custody operations.

They also spoke with people detained at the custody centre and interviewed custody staff and healthcare professionals during their visit.

Within their findings, inspectors highlighted a lack of consistency in the recording of information on the NCS.

While some aspects of custody centre operations were recorded well, they saw repeated recording errors in areas including provision of legal rights, healthcare consultations, and meal provision.

They also noted gaps in the recording of care plan rationale.

Of the 40 records they reviewed, 29 detainees had been assessed as being ‘high risk’ – meaning they should be under constant observation or visited and roused at 15 or 30-minute intervals.

Yet of those marked as ‘high risk’, 15 were placed on the lowest level of observations without any other apparent risk mitigation in place – and gaps in the records regarding a rationale for decision making.

Mr Naylor said: “We recently raised this same issue following our joint inspection of custody in Ayrshire, where we recommended that Police Scotland should ensure custody staff have a clear understanding of what response is required for each of the defined observations levels and that these are applied consistently.”

In total, the report highlighted 13 past recommendations that it said “had relevance for Falkirk custody centre”.

These included recommendations relating to the maintenance and repair of crucial custody infrastructure, the location of CCTV viewing facilities to reduce the likelihood of distraction, and ensuring custody staff received appropriate training and guidance where cleaning is part of their role.

It also included a past recommendation to “review compliance with policy” relating to the delayed release of detainees.

Staff at the Forth Valley custody centre told inspectors there was a lack of management visibility within the department.

They said some managers worked from home, and compressed hour patterns were common, both reducing the number of days managers were at work and visible to staff.

Concern was also raised about staffing levels generally.

Both such issues had previously been highlighted and appropriate recommendations for improvement made in past custody inspection reports.

The Falkirk custody centre features 29 cells and is the only police custody centre in the Forth Valley divisional area, which covers the sheriffdoms of Falkirk, Stirling and Alloa.

During 2023 to 2024, the custody centre was used for detainees on 5,057 occasions, an increase of 687 on the year before.

Inspectors interviewed 11 detainees during the inspection, who were all complimentary about the staff and care provided.

Healthcare at the custody centre is delivered by Southeast Scotland Police Custody Healthcare and Forensic Examination Service, which is run by NHS Lothian.

Inspectors found the healthcare provided to be well managed but made six recommendations to NHS Lothian in relation to matters including ensuring that a take-home version of the anti-overdose medication naloxone is offered to all detainees and that all detainees at risk of nicotine withdrawal are offered nicotine replacement therapy.

It was also recommended NHS Lothian should review the prescribing processes at the Falkirk police custody centre and strengthen the governance of medication prescribing.

Chief Superintendent Chris Stewart, Criminal Justice Services Division said: “Police Scotland welcomes the publication of the report by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland and Healthcare Improvement Scotland and is working to address its findings and implement its recommendations across its custody estate.

“While there are ongoing issues identified, ongoing training of our people is targeted towards the themes raised by external scrutiny bodies and organisational learning.

“We also note that all detainees interviewed during the inspection were complimentary about the support provided by staff and the care of children in our centre was also highlighted as an example of good practice.

“We remain committed to addressing the recommendations and to working closely in partnership to improve custody services. Our Criminal Justice Services Division has already started a comprehensive review of both our custody resourcing and our estate to enhance the custody provision we provide.”