HMICS Corporate plan 2025-28

Scrutiny plan

We publish a scrutiny plan outlining our priorities and scrutiny activities over a three-year period. The plan is developed through consultation with our stakeholders and informed by an objective assessment of policing performance and risk. We keep the plan under continuous review and make it accessible to those who are likely to have an interest in it – maintaining an up-to-date copy on our website.

Our scrutiny activity will follow an approach that takes account of the five principles of external scrutiny set out in the Crerar review, namely: public focus; independence; proportionality; transparency; and accountability, and the priorities set out in the Christie report to support the development of effective and sustainable public services capable of meeting the challenges ahead.

Thematic reviews

We will continue to use thematic reviews to scrutinise cross-cutting issues that benefit from a more holistic review. We publish full reports for each of our thematic reviews, capturing innovation and good practice and, where relevant, making recommendations for improvement. In future, our thematic reviews may also reveal opportunities to work with others (to consider new issues or emerging threats) and provide evidence for future policy development.

Audit and assurance reviews

Our audit and assurance reviews allow for more detailed scrutiny. This is for areas where we believe there is a specific need to audit critical systems to ensure accurate and ethical recording, or provide some external assurance over key processes in high-risk areas. These reviews will also provide opportunities for HMICS to undertake short assignments to provide independent assurance over specific aspects of policing.

We publish concise reports for each of our audit and assurance reviews, highlighting our findings and any recommendations. These reviews will also inform our wider assessment of how well Police Scotland and the SPA have met their obligations to secure best value and continuous improvement, which we will publish in our annual report.

Strategic reviews

We conduct these reviews in key areas where we believe that giving a strategic overview will add value. Such reviews give a high-level assessment of services, in terms of current performance against national policies and standards, highlighting strategic issues for consideration by key stakeholders, as well as informing future scrutiny of that area.

Collaborative reviews

We will continue to work with other scrutiny bodies and undertake joint inspection activity in areas where Police Scotland or the SPA work in partnership and contribute to shared outcomes with others.

Professional advice notes

HMICS may issue professional advice notes (PANs) to Police Scotland, the SPA and Scottish Government. These more formal forms of advice are produced by us as part of our established role in providing professional advice and guidance on policing in Scotland, and are provided directly to the Chair of the SPA, the Chief Constable and Scottish Government Police Division for consideration. We expect that a PAN will be given due consideration (in the context that inspection may follow).

National Preventive Mechanism

HMICS is a member of the United Kingdom’s National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), a group of organisations designated under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT) to monitor places of detention and report on the treatment of and conditions for detainees. OPCAT recognises that detainees are particularly vulnerable and aims to prevent ill treatment through establishing a system of regular visits or inspections to all places of detention. OPCAT requires that states designate an NPM to carry out such visits to places of detention, to monitor treatment of and conditions for detainees, and to make recommendations for the prevention of ill treatment.

The UK NPM is made up of 21 bodies who monitor places of detention across Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. These include police custody, prisons, court custody, immigration and military detention, secure children’s homes, and places where people are detained under mental health legislation. The NPM members have the power to enter places of detention and speak to detainees and staff in private. As a member of the NPM, HMICS carries out regular inspections of police custody in Scotland using the HMICS custody inspection framework. This framework focuses on the treatment of and conditions for detainees, and includes a range of indicators setting out what we expect to find during our custody inspections.