Basing police officers in Scotland’s schools has led to a reduction in violence and other forms of anti-social behaviour and has helped to create improved educational experiences for many young people, according to a report.
‘The Scottish Campus Officer: Past, Present and Future’ report is based on interviews and focus groups conducted with serving officers carried out between 2011 and 2013. The majority of the 55 officers based in 65 Scottish secondary schools took part. The role involves developing strong links with young people and their communities. Officers are assigned to schools where they build up relationships with pupils and staff, providing advice on topics ranging from bullying to drugs.
The officers, also known as School Link Officers and School Liaison Officers in other parts of Scotland, also improve police intelligence available on areas surrounding schools, for example, identifying individuals who have been selling drugs or who are involved in gang-related violence.
The report offers a unique insight into the effect that campus officers have had on their schools and on the lives of the young people they work with.
The interviews suggest:
A reduction in the number of police call outs to the schools and surrounding areas and a drop in the number of violent incidents, brought about by campus officers intervening in situations at an early stage
Better educational experiences for young people, such as officers working with hard-to-reach and vulnerable young people who hadn’t engaged with other avenues of support
Improved communications between troubled and troublesome youths and the police, leading to greater trust and the sharing of information which has then been used to support young people and to combat crime
A demand for more and better training for Campus Officers who have been assigned to schools.
GCU’s Dr Liz Frondigoun, Lecturer in Sociology and Criminology and co-author of the report, said: “Campus Officers were first deployed in Scottish schools in 2002 but there has been little academic research to date into the role they play and the effect they have on the hundreds of young people with whom they work.
“Our work suggests that, in the main, Campus Officers have had a number of positive impacts, including reducing the number of violent incidents and call outs in and around schools and building strong, long-lasting relationships with pupils.
“These relationships have helped to support some hard-to-reach young people and they have also led to an improved flow of information which officers have used to combat criminal activity such as the sale of drugs and gang-related violence.”
The new report has been compiled by academics at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) and Robert Gordon University (RGU) and supported by a grant from the Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR).
It was presented for the first time on Thursday, June 20 as part of GCU’s first annual research day. Campus officers are coordinated by the Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), a centre of expertise on violence prevention.
Karyn McCluskey, Director of the Violence Reduction Unit, said: “Campus officers play a vital role in helping strengthen the relationship between the police, young people and the community. They’re not there to police schools, but to support the local area. The relationships they help to build can have the kind of positive impact that sees not just a reduction in crime but also an increase in young people from a whole range of backgrounds looking to join the police.”
Data was collected prior to the creation of the single Scottish Police Service on April 1, 2013. All of the eight Scottish Forces had school based officers during the period of study.
The Scottish Institute for Policing Research funded the study for the purpose of improving information sharing about good practice within the Campus Officer scheme.
Nicholas Fyfe, Director of the Scottish Institute for Police Research (SIPR), said: “SIPR is delighted to have been able to support this research which makes a significant contribution to developing evidence-based policing in a key area of activity and helps provide the foundations on which the policy of campus officers in Scotland can be taken forward in the future.”
Dr Robert Smith, RGU co-author and a former police constable, said: “This piece of fascinating practice-based research has captured the many voices of the Campus Officer in Scotland. With the coming of the new Police Scotland era it is important to look to the future of both Campus Officers and to the future generations of children in Scotland.”
And Dr Iain MacLeod, RGU postdoctoral researcher and report co-author, said: “This research makes a strong contribution towards our understanding of the valuable role which can be played by Campus Officers in Scottish schools. However, the fact that there are still misconceptions about the reasons for deploying Campus Officers and about the roles they should fill once they are in post, suggests that more work needs to be done if the Campus Officer programme is to deliver its full potential.”
