Agenda Item No. JOINT POLICE BOARD

12 May 2008

INDEPENDENT CUSTODY VISITING SCHEME

REPORT BY CLERK NO. PB25/2008

ABSTRACT: This purpose of this Report is to provide an overview of the Board’s Custody Visiting Scheme during the period 1 April 2007 – 31 March 2008 and to seek approval for the attendance of Custody Visitors at this year’s Scottish Custody Visiting Conference.

1. RECOMMENDATIONS

The Board is asked to:-

(i) note the success of the fifth year of the Independent Custody Visiting Scheme in Tayside; and

(ii) approve the attendance at the ICVA Scottish Conference in Inverness on 19 & 20 September 2008;

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 Custody Visiting is statutory in England and Wales. In Scotland there is no similar requirement for police authorities to run Custody Visiting Schemes but nonetheless each in Scotland now has its own Custody Visiting Scheme. These are run by Scheme Managers and supported by the independent Custody Visiting Association (ICVA). Best practise guidance was issued to police authorities by the then Scottish Executive in 2003.

2.2 The principal objective of the Scheme is to ensure that the rights of detainees, whilst in Police custody, are observed and that issues relating to their welfare are dealt with appropriately. Visitors observe the physical elements of the holding areas; including washing and toilet facilities, food, charge bar etc.

2.3 Taking account of the geographical size of the police authority area, it was considered appropriate to form area teams for the custody holding areas in Angus, and Perth.

3. ROLE OF CUSTODY VISITORS

3.1 Custody Visitors carry out visits to Police Stations, in pairs, without prior notice and at any time of day or night. Detainees are not obliged to see the Custody Visitors but those who wish can talk to them about the welfare and custodial arrangements. The Visitors have a checklist of items for each visit.

3.2 Visitors complete a report form following each visit and this is countersigned by the Duty Officer. Information includes the date and time of visit, the number of detainees seen, the issues raised during visits and the Police response. Copies of the completed forms are sent to both the Clerk and the Police representative, Chief Inspector Sandy Bowman, for any necessary follow-up action.

There have been no difficulties within in accepting and accommodating visits. It is believed that this is a reflection of the commitment of Senior Officers to the success of the Scheme and the effective dissemination of information and familiarisation throughout the Force. The report forms routinely comment on the courtesy and co-operation afforded to Custody Visitors by Police staff.

3.3 The review of all the report forms for the past year discloses that the Custody Visitors have not identified any major concerns regarding the care of detainees or contravention of their rights. The report forms record issues relating to the conditions of cells, such as standard of cleanliness, toilets, condition of cell floor/graffiti etc.

4. VISITS

4.1 During the period 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008, 43 visits (Table 1) were undertaken by the Board’s Custody Visitors.

Division Number of Visits Eastern 10 Central 15 Western 18

4.2 During the 43 visits 109 detainees were interviewed. A breakdown is given below.

Division Total number of Number of Number Refused detainees detainees seen Eastern 25 14 11 Central 37 28 9 Western 47 26 21 Total 109 68 41

5. INDEPENDENT CUSTODY VISITORS ASSOCIATION

5.1 The Independent Custody Visitors Association (ICVA) based in London continues to be supportive in the development of the Tayside Scheme. The Chief Executive, Ian Smith, and Executive Assistant, meet with all the Scottish Scheme Administrators on a regular basis. ICVA is a national organisation funded by the Home Office and the Scottish Government and provides expert advice on managing Custody Visiting Schemes as well as developing training materials and training programmes for Scheme Managers.

6. ANNUAL CONFERENCES

6.1 The 5th Scottish Custody Visiting Conference was held on 20 October 2007 at the Scottish Police College, Tulliallan. The event was organised by the eight Scheme Managers and supported by ICVA. An evening reception was held on Friday 19 October with the conference itself taking place on 20 October. In attendance were over a 100 delegates from across Scotland as well as colleagues from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Ukraine. The main speakers were Deputy Chief Constable John MacNabb of , Chief Inspector Brian Plastow of Lothian and Borders Police and Kim Crawford, Force Medical Examiner Service Manager, Lothian and Borders Police. The programme covered custody development in Scotland, the introduction of custody nurses within Lothian and Borders Police and diabetes within the custody suite. In total 5 Custody Visitors from Tayside Joint Police Board attended the conference together with the Scheme Manager and Chief Inspector Sandy Bowman Police Liason Officer.

6.2 This year’s Scottish Conference will be hosted by Northern Joint Police Board and will be held in Inverness on 20 September. An informal reception hosted by Highland

Council will be held on 19 September. The arrangements for the Conference have yet to be finalised although it has been confirmed that the Conference will focus on recent HMICS reviews of Custody and will feature workshops in the afternoon. Fergus Ewing, Minister for Community Safety has agreed to open the Conference.

6.3 The Board is invited to support the Scottish Conference by authorising the attendance of up to 12 visitors together with the Scheme Manager and the Convener at the event. The Board’s delegates will travel to Inverness on 19 September and return on 20 September. There is no delegate fee for attending the Conference however travel and accommodation costs are estimated at £100 per delegate.

6.4 The UK National Custody Visitor Conference was held in Alton Towers, Staffordshire on 17 November 2007. The conference was attended by three Custody Visitors and the Scheme Manager. Speakers included Neil Curtis of the Home Office, Assistant Chief Constable Rob Taylor of Greater Manchester Police, Everett Hendry from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fiona Cooper, Head of Population Management, Detainee Escorting in Population Management Unit, Joe Malloy, Custody Manager, and Ken London, Authority.

6.5 The Conference proved to be a success, offering excellent networking opportunities and delivering informative and relevant presentations on diverse topics such as custody nurses, mobile custody facilities and raising standards and performance in custody.

6.6 The venue for this year’s UK Conference has yet to be confirmed. There is value in sending a small delegation to national conferences. However until the venue and programme are known the number of delegates attending cannot be determined. It would be my intention to report further to the Board when the programme and venue are confirmed.

7. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

7.1 Visitors carry out their duties on a voluntary basis but travel expenses are paid. In the fifth year of the Scheme’s operation travelling expenses have amounted to £350. Other costs associated with Independent Custody Visiting include membership of ICVA which is £575 per year.

7.2 Attendance at the Annual ICVA Conference and the Scheme Administrators Conference is free, although each authority is responsible for travel and accommodation costs. This will be approximately £2000 in the 2008/09 financial year.

7.3 All the above costs will be met from the approved revenue budget of the Board.

8. CONSULTATION

8.1 The Chief Constable and the Treasurer have been consulted in the preparation of this Report.

9. CONCLUSION

9.1 The Custody Visitors appointed by the Board have been assiduous in undertaking their duties. They are enthusiastic and are determined to fulfil their obligations to a high degree.

9.2 They have not encountered any major concerns relating to the system or the manner in which detainees are held. The Scheme contributes to the overall transparency of the system of holding detainees in custody.

Sheona C Hunter Clerk to the Board 29 April 2008

Note:- No background papers, as defined by Section 50D of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (other than any containing confidential or exempt information), were relied on to any material extent in preparing this report.