The Role of the Police

Revision

The work of the police in Scotland, involves a variety of roles and duties

Describe, in detail, the work of the police in Scotland

(6 marks)

In pairs see if you can come up with a definition of what it is the police do?

•Maintain law and order.• Protect members of the public and their property.• Prevent, detect and investigate crime.

In order to do this the Police carry out a variety of different dutiesCan you think about the different type of duties a police officer would be involved in?

Police Officers can

Provide a high profile presence to the community they work. Provide the initial response to incidents. Search person(s), premises and vehicles. Attend calls; Interview suspects, victims and witnesses; Take statements; Preparing reports for the Procurator Fiscal; Make enquiries into crimes and offences; Gather and use intelligence; Make arrests; Preserve crime scenes Present evidence in court.

Prevent, detect, protect

Give two ways in which the police can:

Prevent + Protect Detect crime

Prevent, detect, protect Prevent + protect

Visit schools and give talks on drugs, knives etc

Presence on the streets, roads

Help in setting up neighbourhood watch schemes

Stop and searches

Detect

Carry out investigations to gather evidence

Interview witnesses Gathering intelligence

on terrorists. Football hooligans etc

The police can be split in to 4 general areas

UniformedCIDTrafficSpecialist Departments

Criminal Investigation Dept. (CID)

They are responsible for investigating serious crimes like

Murders and attempted murder Serious assaults Rape The CID have many departments within it, like Child

Protection, Domestic Violence and Gangs Unit.

Traffic Department (Road Policing)

Speeding. Attend serious/fatal road crashes. Assist CID in dealing with Serious and Organised

Crime Groups. Vehicle pursuits. Vehicle examinations (Road safety) Drunk drivers & Drugs Dangerous drivers Escort duties (Wide loads). Traffic Management/Education.

Specialist Departments

Support Services – this department have responsibility for

Public Order Officers Dog Branch Underwater Units Tactical Firearms Unit. Specialist Search Advisors/Teams Helicopter Armed Response Unit Mounted Branch

POne area of work the police are involved in is Community

Policing.

DThis is officers who work regularly in an area patrolling it

either on foot patrol or mobile, this means that they get to know all the members of the community and can help to reassure them.

EFor example a community police officer could patrol regular

crime hotspots to provide a greater police presence and so deter criminal activity.

Another area of work the police are involved in is in Road Traffic Policing.

This involves officers who are responsible for ensuring that motorists comply with road traffic law as well as attending and investigating serious road crashes. They also provide traffic control.

For example,