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Promotions in the police
13/12/2007
Recommendations on how to improve the promotion process in the police force are made in a new report from the Inspectorate of Constabulary.
The report - Selection for Promotion in the Scottish Police Service - points out that there is much good practice in the way that Scottish police forces select officers for promotion, but this is inconsistent and all of the eight forces need to learn from each other.
The report recommends that:
- Strathclyde Police implements a self-nomination process for promotion to all ranks as soon as possible.
- All forces advertise all vacancies externally (across the UK), at least at the rank of superintendent and above.
- All force promotion processes are underpinned by a single national competency framework, and all forces assess the same competencies for promotion to any given rank.
- Forces introduce scoring mechanisms for all stages of their promotion selection process, and consider each of these stages when determining which candidates are successful.
- Promotion to central service be substantive, provided that forces support only those candidates whom they would progress to an equivalent selection stage for promotion to the generic rank in force and the central service selection process has been revised to reflect the nationally agreed competencies and standards of the generic rank.
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary Paddy Tomkins said:
"I want us to have the best police service we can, that is fit for purpose and responds to the changing demands of Scotland. To achieve this it is vital that we have the right systems in place to make sure the best and most talented officers have their skills and experience recognised.
"The promotion process is about identifying officers with the best ability to deliver what is required at each rank above constable. It is essential that the processes through which promotions are managed not only identify the best people but are also efficient, transparent and fair. The recommendations suggested in this report will help to make sure they are.
"In this day and age, it is almost unheard of to have a system where managerial nomination is the only route to promotion. Similarly a system where the vast majority of vacancies are advertised only within the force can't be in the best interests of Scottish policing as a whole. Scottish communities deserve to have their policing managed and led by people who have experienced a range of policing challenges and different policing styles. We need middle and senior-ranking officers who are prepared to seek out those challenges and we need policing practice which is cross-fertilised with experience from more than one force.
"That's why I want to see chief officers working together to make these opportunities and encourage inter-force movement. I believe the recommendations and the best practice identified in our report will help to improve promotion systems, for the good of police officers, our police forces and the communities they serve."
HMIC for Scotland (commonly known as the Police Inspectorate or HMICS) is responsible for inspecting the eight Scottish police forces and five police services. HMICS operates independently of the police forces, police authorities and the Scottish Government and exists to monitor and improve the police services in Scotland.