Cells closed and Forth Valley prisoners held elsewhere while 'essential repairs' carried out in Falkirk police station
Prisoners taken into custody in the Forth Valley area are currently being held in cells in towns across Central Scotland and Fife.
The custody suite at Falkirk Police Station in the town’s West Bridge Street has been temporarily closed while “essential work” is carried out.
Police Scotland has said that the repairs cannot be done while prisoners are present.
Instead prisoners in custody who need to be detained are understood to be taken to custody suites in Dunfermline, Livingston and St Leonard’s in Edinburgh.
The Falkirk custody centre contains 29 cells and was used on 5,057 occasions in 2023–24, an increase of nearly 687 from the previous year.
It is used by the Forth Valley divisional area which includes Falkirk, Stirling and Clackmannanshire.
The work comes after a joint inspection by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) and Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) carried out in February this year at the custody suite found several issues.
Inspectors assessed the physical environment, including the quality of cells, and observed key processes and procedures relevant to police custody operations.
The inspection team also spoke with people detained at the custody centre and interviewed custody staff and healthcare professionals during their visit.
During that period 18 per cent of detainees were intoxicated on arrival, five per cent declared they were alcoholics and 15 per cent were drug dependent.
Of those detainees 43 per cent disclosed a mental health condition and 35 per cent reported they had previously self-harmed or had attempted suicide.
In total, the report noted 13 past recommendations relating to the maintenance and repair of crucial custody infrastructure, the location of CCTV viewing facilities to reduce the likelihood of distraction and ensuring custody staff received appropriate training and guidance where cleaning is part of their role.
Staff at the custody centre told inspectors there was a lack of management visibility within the department. They said some managers worked from home, and compressed hour patterns were common, both reducing the number of days managers were at work and visible to staff.
Concern was also raised about staffing levels generally.
Inspectors interviewed 11 detainees during the inspection, who were all complimentary about the staff and care provided.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Falkirk custody centre was closed as a temporary measure while essential work is carried out which cannot be done safely whilst the centre is operational.
“We are committed to ensuring our custody estate is modern, well equipped and provides a safe and secure environment for our officers, staff and people brought into police custody.
“Contingency plans are in place for people in custody to be transferred to alternative nearby custody centres during this period until the work is completed.”