Details of record of taped and video interview transcribers used by the MPS

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.25.045831

I note you seek access to the following information:

Request relates to Record of Taped Interview (ROTI) and Record of Video Interview (ROVI) transcripts of police-suspect interviews. Some of the questions were included in a 2022 FOI request on the same topic, and some new questions focus on the use of speech technologies. Given the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence in the last three years, please could you provide answers to the following questions.

1. How many ROTI/ROVI transcribers are currently employed by your police force.
2. Are ROTI/ROVI transcribers employees of your police force or is the work outsourced to an external agency. If outsourced, which external agency is the work outsourced to.
3. What, if any, formal or informal guidance are ROTI/ROVI transcribers provided with for the purpose of producing transcripts.
4. Does your police force produce ROTI/ROVIs (MG15s) for Magistrates' Court cases, or only for Crown Court. If not, what record of the suspect interview is provided for Magistrates' Court cases
5. Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce ROTI/ROVI transcripts.
6. If the answer to question 5 was yes - does/will the use of automatic transcription involve an automatic transcription system developed specifically for your police force or an existing automatic transcription system from an external provider.
7. Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce transcripts of other types of audio/video recordings (e.g. emergency calls, body-worn camera footage, witness interviews).

Decision

I have today decided to disclose the located information to you in full. Please find below information pursuant to your request above.

Q1 - How many ROTI/ROVI transcribers are currently employed by your police force.

A search was conducted by OSS within the Police Single Operating Platform (PSOP). Note that this system does not differentiate between audio and copy typists, which limits the ability to distinguish between the two roles in reporting. There are a total number of 139 typists employed by the MPS, with 84 working within OSS & an additional 55 spread across various departments.

It is also worth mentioning that, in response to a similar request submitted in 2022, under reference 01/FOI/22/023008/I, it was reported that there were 89 transcribers employed at that time, but this figure only accounted for OSS and did not include other departments.

Caveat:
It is important to note that these numbers can fluctuate over time due to factors such as staff turnover, role transitions and other changes, which may impact the overall figures.

Q2 - Are ROTI/ROVI transcribers employees of your police force or is the work outsourced to an external agency. If outsourced, which external agency is the work outsourced to.

ROTI/ROVI transcribers are employed by our Police Service. Work is outsourced to an external agency named Appen on an Ad hoc basis and when the demand is high.

Q3 - What, if any, formal or informal guidance are ROTI/ROVI transcribers provided with for the purpose of producing transcripts.

There are no formal written guidance, as the transcript is undertaken verbatim, including the typing of the caution.

Q4 - Does your police force produce ROTI/ROVIs (MG15s) for Magistrates' Court cases, or only for Crown Court. If not, what record of the suspect interview is provided for Magistrates' Court cases.

It is only for Crown Court unless exceptional circumstances apply. What usually suffices for Magistrates Court is the SDN (short descriptive note) which is present on the MG3 (charging advice and decisions) / MG5 (case details summary) when submitted to the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service).

Youth Court Cases (which are heard in the Magistrates Court) will often require a ROTI (Record of Tape Interview) and this is usually where the youth defendant is tried in respect of an indictable offence.

Q5 - Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce ROTI/ROVI transcripts.

Yes, MPS does use automatic transcription (AT) technology and it went live on 24/04/2024. The current policy states that:

• This functionality is limited in the Met to Pre Charge Interview Summaries only and should not be used for full Records of Interviews. However, ROTI transcriptions are still being produced by professionally trained Met typist.
• The use of AT is also limited to suspect or witness interview content recorded using Axon’s Digital Interview System.
• AT should not be used for BWV (Body Worn Video) or any other media. However, some Specialist Teams have been allowed an exemption to use automatically transcribed content from BWV evidence, incorporating additional business processes.
• There is also a special exemption in place, specifically for teams that benefit from MIR (Major Incident Room). Complete, with a complement of specialist support staff such as dedicated Typists, proof readers and Holmes inputter etc. The exemption allows us to produce both Pre Charge Interview Summaries and Post Charge ROTI’s via the new AT functionality.

Q6 - If the answer to question 5 was yes - does/will the use of automatic transcription involve an automatic transcription system developed specifically for your police force or an existing automatic transcription system from an external provider.

Yes. The Met’s DIR (Digital Interview Recording) Project utilises AT Software from Axon via Axon’s Evidence.com Application.

Q7 - Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce transcripts of other types of audio/video recordings (e.g. emergency calls, body-worn camera footage, witness interviews).

A proof of concept is being conducted to establish if BWV and witness interviews can be used to automate statement transcription.