Scottish Institute for Policing Research

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Responsive Research Fund -Evaluating Police Scotland's New Community Policing Model and Approach

Background

  1. Local Policing is mostly unchanged since the creation of Police Scotland with varied divisional approaches, while crime and public expectations have continued to evolve.
  2. Police Scotland undertook a year of research to understand and define the experiences and challenges of people delivering and receiving local policing services. This culminated in a discovery report (which will be made available to the researchers).
  3. A collaborative approach was taken to explore the problems and opportunities raised in the report. This led to the development of a new model and approach for Local Policing which officers and staff helped co-create, test, and validate. It consists of 3 functions: Community Policing, Community Investigations Hub, and Incident Response.
  4. This is being piloted in Forth Valley in Autumn / Winter 2025. Internal qualitative and quantitative feedback and learning will help inform and iterate the model and approach as it launches across Scotland throughout 2026.

What we are looking to find out

1. Overview

Police Scotland’s 2030 Vision is safer communities, less crime, supported victims and a thriving workforce. A three–year business plan sets out what the Service will do until 2027 towards achieving this vision. The objective of this research call is to support Police Scotland in understanding the impact of its new Community Policing model and approach. The key outcomes for this new model are:

• Communities feel safe through accessible policing, and visible problem solving
• People of Scotland receive the right help at the right time
• Victims are consistently supported through a dedicated, specialist response
• Officers and staff are enabled and feel empowered to do their core role.
 
2. Background research – what we already know
The following themes emerged during the discovery research:

• Response to emergency and non–emergency help
• Visibility to and engagement with communities
• Officer abstractions, backfill, and cover
• Focus on proactive, preventative, problem–solving police work
• Service provision and resourcing
• Clarity and purpose of roles and teams
• Officer and staff burnout, workload, and work–life balance
• Moving roles and onboarding
• Value and identity of frontline policing and frontline roles
• Police risk aversion and fear culture
• Police and public expectations compared to the reality of frontline policing.
3. Lenses to consider for this research

Our collaborative approach to this complex space has led to a range of considerations which we would be interested in seeing reflected in the evaluation. These include:

• Level of impact
   – Individual (e.g. staff, officer, partner, victim)
   – Team/group (e.g. communities, officers, staff, supervisors, community investigation hub team)
   – Service (e.g. getting non–urgent help)
   – System (e.g. public contact, wider partners, prevention approach)

• Drivers of Impact
• Environment
   – Rural
   – Urban
   – Remote (including island communities)

Whilst we are seeking to improve consistency of service tailored to those urban / rural & remote locations, we understand that different people and places have different needs, so one size and model won’t fit across Scotland.

There would be an opportunity to engage with policing colleagues who have facilitated the ongoing pilot of the new community policing model in Forth Valley Division.

The next divisions to ‘go–live’ with the new model are Tayside and Fife in February 2026, followed by Highland & Islands and Argyll & West Dunbartonshire in April 2026.

This research will be focused on Highland & Islands and Argyll & West Dunbartonshire
Divisions – however orientation for researchers will be possible in Tayside and Fife from the
end of February.
4. Outputs

We envisage that this research will include three components. We are open to innovative
ways to approach and format this work which would be insightful, useful, and engaging for
policing and non–policing audiences.

1. Analysis of the existing background evidence base (discovery report). Assess whether the problems raised have been improved and / or addressed and communities’ experiences have changed.

2. Evidence of good practice and stories of policing colleagues and the public using what has been  designed and delivered. This includes looking at the impact of the new documents, tools, processes, policies, and structures that have been introduced.

3. To what extent have we changed mindset among stakeholders, and their perceptions of community policing for example the role of community policing in more informed and enhanced preventative approaches with partners at a local level?

Note: interdependent projects are in design to develop and deliver solutions to improvePolice  Scotland’s approach to local criminal  public protection, and support services. We expect these to further enhance the new community policing model, release essential capacity, and strengthen the frontline. A separate evaluation on the criminal investigation and public protection project is expected in due course – these other projects will commence later in 2026 but not have a direct impact on this evaluation.

Information for Applicants

1. Eligibility

Applications are welcome from any researchers (who do not need to be based in Scotland or at a university, although knowledge of the Scottish context is important). Priority will be given to bids involving staff based at a SIPR member university. We encourage interdisciplinary partnerships and proposals can be submitted by a single institution or across organisations (and can include national and international academic and non– academic partners).

To discuss your application prior to submission please contact either SIPR Director Dr Andrew Wooff (a.wooff@napier.ac.uk) or SIPR Head of Operations, Monica Craig
(m.craig2@napier.ac.uk)

2. Anticipated timescale(s) for completion

Notifications of Intent to apply must be provided by 30th January 2026.

The closing date for applications is 24th February  2026. The successful project will be notified by 10th March 2026 . Projects must be able to start research by April 2026 at the latest and provide the completed evaluation by 11th January 2027.

3. Value

A total of £30,000 will be available to one successful team. Proposals which include co– funding from other sources are welcome.

Application and Award Process

4. Application

A short application form is available to download in the above link.

Strict word limits are in place for each section. Applications which go over the word limit will be excluded from consideration. Applicants are required to complete the relevant application form (download from above link) including the following information:

• Administrative Summary including:
   – Working title
   – Lead Institution
   – Description of team – one paragraph per named investigator which details their relevant experience, expertise, and role in the proposed project.

• Project Summary including:

  – Description which details the project’s background,  aims and objectives, methodology, and timeline and how it meets the core themes of the call.
   – Description of the intended benefits and impacts of the project including clear indication of the expected outputs/ outcomes of the project.
   – Where access to police data or personnel is required, a letter of support from Police Scotland (or the relevant external body) should be provided.

Please ensure you contact Police Scotland’s Research and Strategy Team as earlier as possible to discuss (AcademicResearch@scotland.police.uk).

• Budget Summary:
• Overview of proposed budget including a brief justification of resources required, any cash or in-kind contributions, and whether institutional overheads are waived.; Evidence of in-kind contributions or the waiving of overheads must be provided in the form of an institutional letter confirming this approval.

5. Criteria 

Applications are welcome from researchers, with priority given to staff based at a SIPR member university. 

Projects must be in place to commence no later than April 2026. We appreciate that fieldwork may start later whilst institutional ethical approval is secured. Applicants will also be required to report where this funding has enabled the generation of external income as well as where this project has been included as an impact case study. 

9. Indicative Timeline

Timeline/ milestones
Date
Call Open
9th January 2026
Deadline for Notifications of Intent to apply
30th January 2026
Closing date for applications
24th February 2026
Grant will be awarded
10th March 2026
Latest start date
By 20th April 2026
Project and stakeholders initiation meeting
By 30th April 2026
Mid-grant update due
By 3rd August 2026
Final draft of report and briefing paper submitted for review
2nd December 2026
Completion date – final report accepted and published
11th January 2027

This call was developed by Police Scotland with the support of SIPR.

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