Analysis

ANALYSIS: With police officers encountering digital evidence in the vast majority of inquiries, a digital evidence strategy (DES) can ensure they are prepared to effectively deal with it; Dr Graeme Horsman, Senior Lecturer in Digital Forensics at Cranfield University, explains how the GAMEPLANS acrostic can help officers produce a robust DES to effectively identify, collect, examine, and evaluate any digital devices/data, and define the circumstances when it is appropriate to conduct such tasks.

FEATURE: A new report by the Garda Síochána Inspectorate has called for the force to carry out a strategic threat and risk assessment to identify and tackle transnational organised crime; a workforce plan to better allocate resources, prioritising data-informed processes, and adopting an “all-island” approach to organised crime were also among more than 60 recommendations, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: The under-reporting of disability hate crime (DHC) is widely acknowledged, and a DHC training package for police and the wider criminal justice sector has been developed by support organisation Dimensions, working with Nottingham Trent University (NTU); an evaluation of the training by NTU’s Associate Professor Dr Irene Zempi, Professor Loretta Trickett, and Professional Policing Course Leader Martin Tangen, highlights the positive impact of the package, as well as the importance of training being informed by lived experiences.

FEATURE: Police leaders, academics and stakeholders gathered in Ontario recently for Canada’s first in-person evidence-based policing (EBP) conference, exploring a range of topics including overcoming barriers and normalizing EBP within law enforcement, the importance of leadership in embedding the approach, and turning research into action; Policing Insight’s Matthew Wood looks at the main themes and debates emerging from the Building Bridges event.

FEATURE: A report by the Centre for Women’s Justice following up on its super-complaint about police-perpetrated domestic violence in UK forces has highlighted “entrenched cultures” across the service that “harbour misogyny and cover up wrongdoing”, and has called for improved data collection, more effective vetting, better misconduct procedures, and better decision-making around safeguarding measures when officers face repeat allegations, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: With law enforcement playing a vital role in the planning, preparation and response to major disasters, the increasing number of catastrophic weather events – such as the recent devastating flooding in Spain – have highlighted the challenges authorities face in relation to vulnerable victims; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth takes a closer look at the UN’s Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, which identifies those vulnerable groups most at risk, and the steps that need to be taken to address that risk.

ANALYSIS: In the fourth in a series of five articles looking at the big debates in police use of facial recognition (FR), extracted from this year’s ‘Facing the future: The rise of facial recognition in policing’ report, Policing Insight’s James Sweetland explores the crucial issue of privacy and intrusion – which goes to the very heart of the FR debate – and looks at the absence of legislation around FR, with much of the early oversight coming from privacy regulators.

FEATURE: A report by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland has praised Police Scotland’s “robust and effective” response to missing persons, with the national multi-agency framework driven by the force described as a “particular strength”; but inspectors have also called for more to be done “to ensure that clear leadership and strategic direction is in place”, raise awareness among officers and partners, and address technical and resource challenges, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: In her latest report the Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales, Baroness Newlove, has highlighted concerns around delays caused by the strain on the justice system, the continuing plight of victims of antisocial behaviour, and the need for victims of all crimes to be listened to, rather than “talked at”, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced the most ambitious wave of policing reform for a decade – a new ‘National Centre of Policing’ to run support services for local forces, a new Home Office Police Performance Unit and co-designed police performance framework, and over £500 million of extra funding for forces across England and Wales, as Policing Insight’s James Sweetland reports.

ANALYSIS: New research from the University of Calgary shows that three-quarters of men charged with domestic violence (DV) have already interacted with police at least once, with two thirds showing a clear trajectory of increasing police interactions in the lead up to their DV charge; Associate Professor Lana Wells believes this data around perpetrators offers an opportunity to intervene early and prevent the escalation of violence.

FEATURE: A recent report by RAND Europe on behalf of the Ministry of Justice has highlighted a lack of experience and training among police officers among the main challenges in improving the use of out-of-court disposals (OOCDs) for adults with health vulnerabilities in England and Wales, and has also created a series of guides and a data collection prototype tool to enable forces to implement OOCDs more effectively, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth explores the findings of a new report from the Dublin-based Enhancing Faith Institutions consultancy, which highlights the increase in crimes against all religious communities and places of worship in Europe in the 12 months since the tragic attack in Israel on 7 October, and the subsequent devastating loss of life and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

OPINION: To coincide with the launch of a discussion paper on a stronger national centre for policing in England and Wales – jointly published by the Police Foundation and consultants Leapwise – Foundation Director Rick Muir and Leapwise Managing Director Tom Gash set out their arguments for a new national policing agency and a reformed approach to national decision-making.

FEATURE: Senior police leaders in England and Wales are drafting guidance on governance for the hundreds of staff networks for the first time, but their efforts to establish a consistent framework have already drawn criticism from some groups, and the potential of a legal challenge, as Ian Weinfass reports.

INNOVATION: With domestic abuse (DA) now recognised as a policing priority for UK forces, a new approach to tackling the issue has been launched by Dyfed Powys Police, with neighbourhood policing teams adopting the 4Ps model (prepare, protect, prevent, pursue) usually associated with terrorism and organised crime to provide an improved service to medium-risk DA victims and target offenders more effectively, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Latest findings from research with Queensland Police Service indicate that organisational and operational stressors such as poor leadership, work/life balance and lack of resources can be up to three times more harmful to officers’ mental health than trauma, as Griffith University Associate Professor and police psychologist Dr Jacqueline Drew told the recent Global Evidence-Based Policing Conference.

LONG READ: A record number of police forces in England and Wales have been put into special measures (formally known as ‘Engage’) over the past three years – but what does Engage mean, and how do forces move out of it? Policing Insight’s James Sweetland spoke to HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary Andy Cooke, as well as two Chief Constables who have led their forces out of special measures – Staffordshire’s Chris Noble and Wiltshire’s Catherine Roper – to find out more.

OPINION: The latest figures for gun crime in parts of Canada make for worrying reading, with shootings in Toronto increasing by 58% on last year, and the average age of those involved dropping to 20; Professor Ardavan Eizadirad of Wilfrid Laurier University argues that the best way to tackle the issue is through a data-driven public health approach that addresses the root causes of violence using evidence-based interventions.

FEATURE: The ‘It Does Matter’ campaign – launched jointly by Thames Valley Police and campaigner Lisa Squire, whose daughter Libby was murdered by a sexual predator – aims to encourage reporting of non-contact sexual crimes to prevent offenders from escalating to more dangerous behaviour; now the force is hoping to share the campaign and its resources more widely with police colleagues and other agencies, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: With public trust and confidence in policing reportedly at record low levels, University of the West of England Criminology Lecturer Finley MacDonald, and University of Hull Policing Degree Programme Director Mike McKue, explore the often overlooked changes and developments in police training which could help to address trust and confidence challenges.

FEATURE: Academics from two Canadian universities have raised concerns about the country’s law enforcement use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, claiming that police bodies aren’t transparent enough when procuring new tech, and that failing to make policing subject to new AI legislation could undermine justice in Canada in the future, as Policing Insight’s James Sweetland reports.

FEATURE: A new report from the University of Portsmouth and Perpetuity Research urges more UK police forces to overcome a “risk averse” approach to working with the private sector and tap into a “wealth of expertise” – particularly in banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions – to tackle the complex and evolving landscape of economic crime, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: An evaluation of an expanded restorative justice (RJ) approach in the Australian Capital Territory, which includes RJ referrals for suitable family and domestic violence cases as well as sexual violence offences, has seen strong support and satisfaction rates from victims, and a reduction in the number of repeat offences committed by perpetrators, as the Australian Institute of Criminology’s Dr Siobhan Lawler explained to delegates at the recent Global Evidence-Based Policing Conference.