Anyone who wishes to give advice to persons held in a police station for which payment is claimed from the Legal Services Commission (LSC) must be accredited by either completing the Police Stations Representative Accreditation Scheme (PSRAS) or the Police Station Qualification (PSQ) part of the Criminal Litigation Accreditation Scheme (CLAS).

Persons who are training for either of these qualifications must be registered as a probationary police station representative with the LSC in order to be able to claim payment from legal aid funds.

The Police Station Representative Accreditation Scheme is designed to ensure that representatives giving advice to clients in the police station have demonstrated their competence to undertake the work.