Scottish Government MAPPA annual overview report 2016

7.0 ViSOR

The Violent and Sex Offender Register ( ViSOR) system is designed to support MAPPA by assisting co-operative working between the responsible authorities in their joint management of individuals subject to the arrangements.

The UK-wide system is owned and managed by the Home Office Police ICT Company Directorate, with the Police Service of Scotland National Systems Support Department providing maintenance and support to the ViSOR user community in Scotland.

ViSOR is the agreed system used by responsible authorities to facilitate the secure exchange and storage of information in accordance with the MAPPA National Guidance 2016 and under the duty to cooperate, both of which are underpinned by section 10 of the 2005 Act.

The Scottish Government continues to assist the responsible authorities to consider how they more effectively discharge their responsibility to share information in respect of the offenders they manage.

In response to the 2015 joint inspection of MAPPA by HMICS and the Care Inspectorate, the Scottish Government continues to work in partnership with the responsible authorities to improve effective usage of the system by criminal justice social work.

This has included work with the Police Service of Scotland, Home Office and individual local authorities to improve accessibility for members of staff responsible for managing MAPPA offenders, and to explore future improvements to ViSOR which will seek to modernise the system improving its effective usage in Scotland.