Police urged to improve ‘poor quality, ill-fitting’ uniforms for officers

Police Scotland has been urged to improve the uniforms worn by officers after a review found several kit items were ill-fitting and of poor quality.

Trousers worn by officers were found to be insufficiently stretchy and faded in colour, while fleeces were too thin.

A review by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) also found that jackets which stopped before the waist were too short and body armour was too bulky for wearing comfortably while in vehicles.

The quality of police-issued trousers has previously come under scrutiny.

In 2019, the then chief constable Iain Livingstone admitted the standard of the items was not good enough and approved a switch to “higher quality cargo pants”.

The HMICS report said Police Scotland’s boots had previously been highly regarded, but more recent footwear was described as looking “unprofessional”.

It said the practice of police buying their own kit had become “normalised”.

Brian McInulty of HMICS said: “Frontline officers and staff are operating in remarkably challenging environments; they are the face of Police Scotland, and the quality of the service they provide affects the overall trust and confidence the public have in the police.

“Ensuring that officers and staff have access to uniform and equipment that is high-quality, comfortable and effective is of critical importance.

“Many officers and staff are purchasing their own items of uniform.

“This leads to a lack of uniformity across the service, and it is, quite frankly, unacceptable that officers and staff find themselves in this position.”

HMICS spoke to a variety of officers around Scotland, as well as visiting the Police Scotland stores site in Glasgow. The report said the current system is “unfair” as frontline officers often have to make do with lower-quality kit than specialist or senior officers.

The report states: “We heard repeated comments from frontline officers, staff and supervisors, that the choice and quality of uniform was poor – and we saw this first hand, with officers showing us faded trousers and torn microfleeces.

“There was a notion that all decisions on uniform and equipment provided to frontline officers were predicated on cost, ahead of quality.

“These views contrasted starkly with how officers interpreted the uniform supplied to specialist officers, and senior officers across Police Scotland, with a generally-held view that were was more investment in the range and quality of uniform available to these groups.”

Responding to the HMICS report, chief superintendent Stevie Dolan said: “While HMICS highlights important progress in relation to body-worn video and Taser, we know the quality, availability and processes to replace uniforms are important for our workforce.

“The chief constable has set out a vision for the future of policing in Scotland, which prioritises support for our frontline.

“We’ll take account of this report and listen to officers and staff to ensure they get the uniform and kit they need to deliver for communities.”