A range of guidance doucments have been created, primarily by the Scottish Government’s Community Safety Unit to support the community safety sector. Links to the most current and relevant have been included below. This page also features useful Guidance published by other agencies relevant to community safety.

Understanding Children’s Human Rights: A guide for public services in Scotland

This resource is aimed at those working in public bodies in Scotland, including local authorities and health boards, who are interested in learning more about children’s rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

A Child Friendly Guide to Scotland’s Youth Justice Standards

The Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice (CYCJ) has created a child and young person friendly guide to Scotland’s new and improved Youth Justice Standards, on behalf of the Scottish Government.

Working with Children in Conflict with the Law 2021: standards

These standards replace those published in 2012 and are intended to guide both strategic and operational services’ understanding of what is expected at each stage of a child’s journey through the justice system.

Safer Communities Programme (Scottish Government, 2009)

This document outlines the Safer Communities programme and seeks to provide a series of guidance, support and tools for partnership working.

Evaluation: A Guide to Basic Evaluation (Scottish Government, 2010)

Written to support better outcomes for communities, this guidance document supports the development of a framework that enables impact to be measured against planned outcomes.

A Partnership Strategic Assessment (Scottish Government, 2011)

This document provides guidance for those tasked with writing a strategic assessment, providing templates and examples of how to complete each section. This guidance can be used at the initial stages of compiling a strategic assessment or referred to throughout the writing process.

Strategic Assessment: Partnership prioritisation – guidance and matrix

Outlines partnership prioritisation guidance designed to help CSPs and other partnerships make informed strategic decisions about resource prioritisation.

A Strategic Assessment Guide for Senior Managers (Scottish Government, 2010)

Highlights the benefits of using the strategic assessment process to support evidence based planning and identifies what needs to be done by senior managers in local government to make the process successful.

Engaged and Confident Communities (Scottish Government, 2011)

This document considers how we can better engage with communities, taking readers through community engagement processes from anaylsing need, through planning and implementation to reviewing and evaluating activity.

Governance and Accountability (Scottish Government, 2011)

Aimed at senior partnership managers, this document looks at the principles of governance and accountability; and how to assess and improve partnership effectiveness.

Governance: Structures, Roles and Responsibilities (Scottish Government, 2011)

This document looks at a variety of community safety partnership structures and associated roles and responsibilities to encourage continued reveiws to ensure that structures are fit for purpose.

Antisocial Behaviour Notices (Scottish Executive, 2006)

This guidance deals with additional power available to local authorities attempting to deal with cases of antisocial behaviour and is primarily aimed towards antisocial behaviour teams in local authorities.

Guidance on Antisocial Behaviour Orders (Scottish Executive, 2004)

This document provides information on Antisocial Behaviour Orders including; relevant policies, managing the application process, action following the making of an order and ASBOs for 12-15 year olds.

Guidance on Antisocial Behaviour Strategies (Scottish Executive, 2005)

Part One of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 places a statutory duty on each local authority to prepare a strategy for dealing with antisocial behaviour in the authority’s area. This guidance aims to assist local authorities to meet their statutory duty.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders on Convictions – Guidance (Scottish Executive, 2005)

This guidance has been produced for operational practitioners, predominantly local authority staff and police tackling antisocial behaviour at local level. This guidance note seeks to compliment statutory guidance issued in 2004 and addresses questions raised by pactitioners about ASBOs made on conviction since the power came into force.

A Partnership Approach to Tackling Violence Against Women in Scotland: Guidance for Multi-Agency Partnerships (COSLA & Scottish Government, 2009)

This document gives practical information and guidance to the 32 multi-agency partnerships (MAPs) in Scotland which are working on violence against women issues. It aims to support all MAPs to work consistently with the government’s strategic direction and to develop effective local strategies and activities to tackle all forms of violence against women. It is based on the first-hand experience of MAPs and includes helpful case study examples.

Building Community Capacity Resources for Community Learning & Development Practice: An Introductory Guide by SCDC (Scottish Government, 2007)

This guide brings together frameworks, tools and other materials that may be helpful for community learning and development practitioners in taking forward their role in building community capacity.

Capacity for Change – Building Community Capacity: Guidance for Staff Working with Communities by ODS (Scottish Government, 2009)

This guide is designed to support staff involved in community capacity building in Scotland. It gives practical advice about how to build community capacity, brings together existing materials and tools and provides useful examples of what others have done.

Best Value Toolkits – Audit Scotland

Audit Scotland have developed a range of Best Value Toolkits to be used when they carry out reviews or audits of public bodies. Each toolkit takes the form of structured key questions, with a matrix of possible levels of performance, ranging from basic to advanced practice.