Police Scotland meets with religious and minority communities to build more inclusive service
Police Scotland’s chief constable, together with officers and staff, have met with key individuals from religious and minority ethnicity communities as part of efforts to build an effective and inclusive service.
The force acknowledged that that communities with different backgrounds have “not always received the policing service that they deserve”.
The meeting was an opportunity to discuss recent policing developments as well as gaining a better understanding of the issues that impact diverse communities the most.
This included an update on a “refreshed” Policing Together programme designed to build an anti-racist and anti-discriminatory service.
Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton said: “We have previously acknowledged that communities with different backgrounds have not always received the policing service that they deserve, and we remain determined to drive meaningful change to become a better and more inclusive organisation.
“We must be a police service for everyone, and people from all our communities must feel able to speak to us, whether it is to report a crime or share information. We also want people from all backgrounds to see policing as a potential career.
“Our Policing Together strategy has been refreshed and now includes a new communities pillar, which is focused on driving engagement and understanding the needs of all the people we serve.
“These engagement sessions are invaluable, and we look forward holding more in the future as we expand our network of representatives to ensure we are building and maintaining relationships of trust and confidence.
“As well as prioritising developing our relationships externally, we are also continuing to support our officers and staff, providing them with training and guidance to enable them to deliver the highest standard of service to all our diverse communities.”