There were almost THREE TIMES as many stop and searches carried out last year by Clackmannanshire police compared with the year before.

Figures obtained by the Advertiser reveal that of the 1061 searches just a third (353) were positive with most related to alcohol and drugs.

Two thirds (708) of the searches were ‘consensual’, whereby the person searched agreed to be searched and an officer did not require ‘reasonable suspicion’ – the requirement of a statutory search.

The number of searches carried out on 10 to 15-year-olds also rose to 154 – almost double the number in 2012/13 – with two thirds of them on boys.

Recently Police Scotland announced that consensual searches would end for all children under 12.

It followed a review by the Scottish Police Authority (SPA), the body which oversees the national force, which published 12 recommendations aimed at improving the “targeting, effectiveness, and transparency” of the use of the tactic, which allows officers to search people for drugs, alcohol, stolen goods and weapons. The review covered the first nine months of the single Scottish force – from April to December 2013.

It found that while most police officers were clear of the need to target activity on the right person, in the right place at the right time, some officers perceived pressure to conduct a certain number of searches and the extent to which stop and search contributes to falling violence was not clear.

Brian Barbour, the SPA member who chaired the scrutiny task group, said, “The golden thread running through those recommendations is the need for a step change in knowledge and awareness – within policing, and more widely in our society.

“We need to collect better data and analyse it more, and to make stronger the connection between intelligence gathered and the activity undertaken. We need to increase the transparency of reporting and publication of stop and search data.

“People need to be better informed of their rights, including the right to decline non-statutory search. And we need more research to better understand the longer-term impacts of stop and search on particular groups in our communities, especially younger people.” There are two types of stop and searches used in Scotland: statutory (legislative) and non-statutory (consensual).

Under the rules, officers are not required to inform suspects that they may refuse a consensual search and there is no requirement to meet a particular standard of consent.

Over the last three years in Clackmannanshire, the majority of stop and searches carried out on the public have been classed as consensual and most have brought about negative results.

The figures obtained by the Advertiser, through a Freedom of Information Request, reveal that in 2011/12 of the 1820 searches carried out just five per cent (78) were positive.

In 2012/13 the number of searches dropped dramatically to 420 – no explanation has been given by police – however the ratio of positive to negative searches remained, with just 14 per cent (55) proving positive.

A total of 84 per cent of searches carried out in 2011/12 were consensual with the figure falling to 63 per cent last year (2013/14).

Chief Superintendent Davie Flynn, Divisional Commander for Forth Valley said, “Stop and search is one of a number of policing tactics we use to keep people safe.

“Through continued engagement with the public and from our multi-member ward policing plans, we know that crimes of violence and antisocial behaviour are key concerns for our communities and it is essential that weapons and other items associated with these offences including alcohol and drugs are removed from our communities before they can do harm.”