I'm not trying to convince you, i am providing my personal opinion, that's what i thought this forums where about.

You are right plumbers, health visitors and meter readers and other people of this sort do spend time in homes of strangers, the difference being, they have offices they keeps track off their where about at all time, with customers names, address and phone numbers, most of their transport now have tracking systems and company phones, when a employee is unreachable or not wear they are meant to be the company has a average of 85-90% more chance off keeping them safe.

Now, with a "sex worker" can you honestly tell me that their where about and appointments are ALWAYS known by a 3rd party? that will keep track of them and keep them safe in case of a emergency??

http://www.quayservices.co.uk/scottish.law.html

The Law and Brothels

Brothels are illegal.

What is a brothel?

Working with other sex workers from the same property makes the premises a brothel, regardless if the women are all working independently and at different times of the week.   That?s true whether or not they work there at the same time, whether or not they offer sexual intercourse and even whether or not they charge.

If you are touring with a friend for companionship only and that friend is not a sex worker, it may be difficult to prove this.  However, the Police will consider each case differently and if there is no evidence of a brothel being run then they will leave you to it.

If the premises are made up of different rooms, and let separately to different individuals, they may still be treated as a brothel if there are shared facilities such as toilets, washing facilities etc.

With regards to brothel keeping, The Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 (c.39) states that it is an offence for any person to:
?Keep, manage, act or assist in the management of a brothel
?Be the tenant, lessee, occupier or person in charge of any premises and knowingly allow such premises or any part thereof to be used as a brothel or for the purposes of habitual prostitution
?Be the lessor or landlord of any premises, or the agent of such lessor or landlord, and lets the property with the knowledge that the premises or some part of the premises are or is to be used as a brothel, or is wilfully a party to the continued use of such premises or any part as a brothel

Section 45 of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010 came into force on 13 December 2010, raising the maximum penalty for offences under section 11 of the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 (brothel keeping etc) to 7 years imprisonment or a fine or both on conviction on indictment (i.e. in front of a jury).

 

Escorting and The Law

Working as an Escort

It is legal to work as a sex worker for an escort agency.

Be careful which agencies you decide to work for as some will try to rip you off and offer no protection whatsoever.  Shop around for agencies which look out for your safety, offer reasonable terms and conditions and have been recommended by other workers.

Working as an independent escort is also legal.

If you work with a ?maid?, who doesn?t provide sexual services, this is also legal.  As long as the maid is not selling sexual services nor has no element of control over the business, then he/she can get paid.  Please note that duties such as cleaning, making coffee and taking rubbish out do not amount to control.

If the maid assists with the management of the business or has any control over it?s running in any way, she/he is breaking the law and is liable for prosecution.  Control can consist of banking, paying bills, advertising services or helping to set prices.

 

Grampian Police

Quay Services have liased with Grampian Police regarding their approach to off-street sex workers after we received questions from women working independently as escorts who had experienced police officers turning up at their place of work.
 Below is a summary of the response from Grampian Police regarding their approach to women working off-street.  By having this information on our website we hope to better inform women of the local police approach in the local area:
 
Grampian Police stated that they wish to establish a good rapport with women working in the sex industry.  They want to help prevent crimes happening against you e.g. punter robberies, brothel involvement etc. 

However, they stated they are also under duty to respond to any concerns regarding potential criminal activity from members of the public.  If someone e.g. housekeeping/hotel staff, neighbours etc alert the Police to any activity that is deemed by them as suspicious e.g. different individuals coming to and from a flat etc then the Police may visit the property.

This is because they are looking for any criminal activity related to prostitution and looking to ensure the safety of off-street sex workers.

Grampian Police?s main objectives in contacting indoor sex workers are:
?Ensuring women?s safety
?Ensuring that there is no coercion/force i.e. human trafficking and making sure that the women present are working of their own free will
?Confirmation of identity i.e. women are who they say they are
?The prevention of bigger crimes - Grampian Police are of the opinion that this method of engaging with off-street sex workers may help to prevent larger scale crimes such as robberies and attacks on women by punters.  It is hoped that by building a better rapport and trust with Grampian Police, women may feel more comfortable and able to inform Police about crimes committed against them, and ultimately feel more protected by Grampian Police
?Grampian Police are keen to share information with off-street sex workers regarding dodgy punters and also wish to provide safety advice
?Ensuring that you are working within the boundaries of the law


 If Grampian Police do visit your property and have established that you are working there of your own free will they will then take your photograph ? they do this because if something happened to you then they would be able to identify you more quickly and would help inform their investigation.  The photograph is only seen by a small team of Officers who are working within the sex industry department of Grampian Police. Grampian Police have stated that any information gained by officers regarding women working off-street is kept confidential within a small team in Grampian Police.  The information cannot be accessed by other law enforcement teams and as such would not appear on a PVG check.

The Police will also take your contact details and run them through the Police National Computer (PNC check), a computer database system that is used by law enforcement agencies across the UK.  They are looking for any outstanding warrants or any previous criminal convictions that they should be aware of. 
If you are with a client when Grampian Police visit your property, they will also take a photograph and personal details from your client.  Their details are also run through the PNC.  This is for your safety, to ensure that the client is not a dangerous criminal or is wanted by the Police.

 Grampian Police have stated that as long as there is no evidence of criminal activity or brothel keeping, then the Police will take no action.  After Grampian Police have visited and are satisfied that you are working independently, they will ask you to call or text them next time that you are working in Aberdeen.   Grampian Police stated this is because if a hotel or serviced flat, for example, do contact them again with the same issues such as individuals coming to and from the property, then they will be able to confirm that you are not doing anything illegal.  Then it is up to the individual establishment to decide whether they wish to take any action, such as asking you to leave.
The decision to ask you to leave is made by the venue and not at the insistence of Grampian Police, unless they have had a specific complaint.
By communicating with the Police about when you are working in Aberdeen, they endeavour to be able to pass onto you any information that is relevant to your wellbeing, such as giving details of a dodgy punter for you to look out for.  And vice versa.
A common concern raised by women is how confidential the storage of their information is once Grampian Police have taken their details and any future implications having contact with the police may have e.g. on employment prospects.
If you have any views on this approach, please get in touch and we will be happy to pass on any comments to Grampian Police.
For access to more detailed information about the law in Scotland, please follow this link.

Read before you speak. 

Grampian Police?s main objectives in contacting indoor sex workers are:
?Ensuring women?s safety
?Ensuring that there is no coercion/force i.e. human trafficking and making sure that the women present are working of their own free will
?Confirmation of identity i.e. women are who they say they are
?The prevention of bigger crimes - Grampian Police are of the opinion that this method of engaging with off-street sex workers may help to prevent larger scale crimes such as robberies and attacks on women by punters.  It is hoped that by building a better rapport and trust with Grampian Police, women may feel more comfortable and able to inform Police about crimes committed against them, and ultimately feel more protected by Grampian Police
?Grampian Police are keen to share information with off-street sex workers regarding dodgy punters and also wish to provide safety advice
?Ensuring that you are working within the boundaries of the law


 If Grampian Police do visit your property and have established that you are working there of your own free will they will then take your photograph ? they do this because if something happened to you then they would be able to identify you more quickly and would help inform their investigation.  The photograph is only seen by a small team of Officers who are working within the sex industry department of Grampian Police. Grampian Police have stated that any information gained by officers regarding women working off-street is kept confidential within a small team in Grampian Police.  The information cannot be accessed by other law enforcement teams and as such would not appear on a PVG check.

The Police will also take your contact details and run them through the Police National Computer (PNC check), a computer database system that is used by law enforcement agencies across the UK.  They are looking for any outstanding warrants or any previous criminal convictions that they should be aware of. 
If you are with a client when Grampian Police visit your property, they will also take a photograph and personal details from your client.  Their details are also run through the PNC.  This is for your safety, to ensure that the client is not a dangerous criminal or is wanted by the Police.

 Grampian Police have stated that as long as there is no evidence of criminal activity or brothel keeping, then the Police will take no action.  After Grampian Police have visited and are satisfied that you are working independently, they will ask you to call or text them next time that you are working in Aberdeen.   Grampian Police stated this is because if a hotel or serviced flat, for example, do contact them again with the same issues such as individuals coming to and from the property, then they will be able to confirm that you are not doing anything illegal.  Then it is up to the individual establishment to decide whether they wish to take any action, such as asking you to leave.
The decision to ask you to leave is made by the venue and not at the insistence of Grampian Police, unless they have had a specific complaint.
By communicating with the Police about when you are working in Aberdeen, they endeavour to be able to pass onto you any information that is relevant to your wellbeing, such as giving details of a dodgy punter for you to look out for.  And vice versa.
A common concern raised by women is how confidential the storage of their information is once Grampian Police have taken their details and any future implications having contact with the police may have e.g. on employment prospects.
If you have any views on this approach, please get in touch and we will be happy to pass on any comments to Grampian Police.
For access to more detailed information about the law in Scotland, please follow this link.

 

I read a lot , think a lot and have experienced even more. That is why I am not naive  enough to believe everything I am told  especially by the police. Funny how anyone who dares to have a different opinion OR question stuff is ignorant. Well name calling is one of the things I learned to deal with  as a kid being different to my classmates guess not much changes in this tolerant country of ours .

Amy have you experience it yourself??

Yes I have, not that it's any of your business. I also know many others this has happened to.

You are right plumbers, health visitors and meter readers and other people of this sort do spend time in homes of strangers, the difference being, they have offices they keeps track off their where about at all time, with customers names, address and phone numbers, most of their transport now have tracking systems and company phones, when a employee is unreachable or not wear they are meant to be the company has a average of 85-90% more chance off keeping them safe.

Now, with a "sex worker" can you honestly tell me that their where about and appointments are ALWAYS known by a 3rd party? that will keep track of them and keep them safe in case of a emergency??

Well I certainly make sure that at least one of my security buddies knows exactly where I am, when I have bookings and how long they are and what time they are expecting to hear from me as well as having full details of the client for outcalls, and I would expect any responsible sex worker to do likewise. My personal safety, whether I am working, catching a taxi or walking home is MY responsibility, not that of the police.

Out of interest, if I got into trouble on an outcall, how would the police 'keep track' of me (and for that matter, if I decide to murder the plumber and dump the body, what's the difference between their office and my security buddy calling the police if they don't hear from them/me on time - why is the former 'safer'?) And why the inverted commas, incidentally?

Quote from: Michelle8 on 17 March 2012, 12:29:53 am

Now I understand why the media( NEWS PAPER AND TV) always talk about sex worker as we are all  vulnerable and ignorants..

Some people haven't a clue and they still argue.

OM LORD.

Oh....dear.

What has any of the previous waffle got to do with the FACT that independent, British, legal lone sex workers have been harrassed (etc etc!) by certain police forces?

Nothing at all, which is why, Michelle, this is a formal warning to keep it civil and on topic. You can find out what the topic is by reading the thread starter by SCOT-PEP, a well known organisation which supports and protects sex workers, and whose concerns about the police's behaviour is the reason for this thread.

You appear to have only signed up to this forum for to rant, rave and namecall (and here's a tip; if you're going to accuse others of being ignorant, it might be a good idea to wait until you've attained some degree of basic literacy yourself - most of the non-British women who post here have a better command of written English than you display in your posts) and this sort of rudeness and hostility will not be tolerated. Hot Pepper in particular has been particularly forgiving, but I for one will not be called ignorant by somebody who cannot spell 'newspaper', especially when they lack the manners to even attempt to answer the points I have raised, and have sidestepped every single one to instead back into their corner and whine about how thick we all are.

Any more of the same (and that includes the shouting - posting in all caps is against the forum guidelines) and you're going on Mute. Either participate in the discussion like a sensible adult, or go back to wherever you came from and take your mindless, ill-informed shrieking with you.

There will not be another warning.

A few months ago the same problems were happening in Inverness. It should pass. The cops often take on projects like this when the auditors are due in.

Now I understand why the media( NEWS PAPER AND TV) always talk about sex worker as we are all  vulnerable and ignorants..

Some people haven't a clue and they still argue.

OM LORD.

Really well I toured scotland on my own.  I was questioned by the police, They tried to take my photo but I refused unless they arrested me and I was removed from the apartment I had paid a lot of money for.  Thankfully I had put all my earnings into the bank that morning or I would have lost that as well.  I was not breaking the law.  I was touring alone.  The police had no reason to suspect illegal activity and basically told me they just dont want more prositutes coming into the area.  They had no legal reason whatsoever to even come near me.  they had to admit no law was broken (I am quite admant when I need to be and I stated that unless I was arrested and charged with a lawyer present they would not be getting my photograph, they have no legal right to take it by the way).

So I do not have a clue???  I think I do.  I was on the end of it.  Perhaps as you work there all the time it is different.  We are after all talking about women who tour to the area so perhaps it is you who does not have a clue yet still wants to argue the point.

I take great offence at basically being called a liar and ignorant of the facts when I am one of the unfortunate ones it has happened to.  perhaps jumping off your high horse and getting a hold of the FACTS before spouting off your own opinions.  Remember this is a warning thread for women, it is about facts not what you think might be true in yourcase.  Facts outweigh personal opinions everytime and perhaps you should realise that before insulting anyone this has happened to. 
Do you have any idea of how bloody scary it is when this happens?  Or the repurcussions for those that did have their pictures taken?  It is now down on record they are prositutes and that will follow them for the rest of their lives.  Any full CRB that allows police notes will have it on. so there will be no working as a midwife (my previous job before this that I had hoped to go back to one day) there is no working with children or vulnerable people at anytime in your life.

This has a serious affect on those it has happened to.  I cannot now go back to my old job as I said before as my name is now on record as being a prossie.  For you to make light of it or to even rubbish it is damn annoying and has really pissed me off.  (Sorry mods I do not normally swear).  In fact I never write arguing posts in all the years I have been on here but your lack of knowledge has seriously got my goat. 
Before posting again on any thread why not ensure you are aware of the facts, it will make you sound a little more educated and not quite so thick