About Sacro#
Sacro began in November 1971 as the Scottish Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders, from a volunteer drop-in centre in Edinburgh, a hostel in Glasgow and a travel service for prisoners' families. Its local services merged into one organisation in 1992, and it has used the name Sacro on its own since 1998. Today it describes itself as a Scottish community justice organisation working with both the people harmed by crime and the people responsible, across community justice, community safety and public protection. It is based in Edinburgh, with about 190 staff.
Leaving prison: Upside#
Since 1 April 2025 Sacro has led Upside, Scotland's national voluntary throughcare service, run by eight charities with Scottish Government funding. It is for anyone in Scotland serving a sentence of four years or less, or held on remand, whatever their age or gender. A worker can meet you at the prison gate and help with health, housing, money, skills and work. Upside replaced separate services for men and women, including the Shine women's mentoring service that Sacro led from 2013. You can contact Upside by email or web form.
Its other services#
Many of Sacro's services cover particular areas, and each has its own route in:
- Justice: police custody support in Glasgow and Fife, bail mentoring in Glasgow, mentoring for veterans, and a free travel service for Edinburgh residents visiting someone in a Scottish prison.
- Domestic abuse: FearFree supports men and LGBTI+ people experiencing domestic abuse, Aditi supports Black and minority ethnic women in Edinburgh, and Aura supports people in North Lanarkshire.
- Communities: community mediation, restorative justice, and housing support for young people in Elgin.
For anything else, use the contact page, which aims to reply within ten working days and says Sacro cannot give legal advice but will suggest where to find it.
Changing your name in Scotland with a record#
Sacro's site has nothing on changing your name, criminal record checks or disclosure. The rules are worth knowing before you start.
- Checks. Criminal record checks in Scotland are made by Disclosure Scotland. mygov.scot lists four levels, from a Level 1 disclosure (which replaced the basic disclosure) to the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme. Its paper application form asks for previous forenames and surnames, so a new name does not separate you from a conviction.
- PVG members. mygov.scot says a member of the PVG scheme who changes their name must tell Disclosure Scotland within 3 months, and lists a deed poll among the evidence it accepts.
- Police notification. Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 covers Scotland, so anyone subject to its notification requirements has 3 days from first using a new name to report it to the police (section 84).
- Orders and licences. Anyone on a community payback order or a licence should talk to their justice social worker about a change before making it.
A deed poll works for people living in Scotland, and someone born in Scotland can instead record a change with National Records of Scotland. How to change your name in Scotland compares the routes, and Can I change my name if I have a criminal record? covers the police and licence rules, written mainly for England and Wales. If you want a new name because of abuse, charities that help after domestic abuse lists Scottish services.
This page describes what Sacro publishes on its own website, read on 26 October 2026. Sacro has not reviewed it, and listing a charity here does not mean it recommends this handbook or any deed poll service.
