Analysis

INSIGHT: The Home Office’s Modern Crime Prevention Strategy was published last year in the hope that police chiefs would read it and disseminate it within their force. Neither of those two things happened, but as the Home Office told senior officers recently crime is changing and crime prevention is changing with it.

Analysis: With the media reporting sharp rises in the number of abandoned 999 calls, former Assistant Chief Constable of GMP Ian Wiggett examines the causes and argues the issue is symptomatic of much wider problems in the call handling and response system.

ANALYSIS: Should the proposed BTP merger with Police Scotland be put on hold? Calls for a delay have increased since a draft HMICS report described the decision to merge the forces as 'entirely political'. Kath Murray looks at the evidence.

ANALYSIS: In the third of a series of special articles examining the progress of Police and Crime Commissioners as they assume joint governance over police and fire services in their areas, Catherine Levin reports on a process losing momentum in the face of obstacles both political and practical.

Analysis: Dr Iain Britton, a CoPaCC director focused on police transformation and delivery, reflects on the announcements of investment for the third round of the Police Transformation Fund, discussing the projects which are being supported and what they tell us about the ongoing national agenda to transform policing.

POLICING INSIGHT EXCLUSIVE: In our final exclusive extract from "Police Chiefs in the UK: Politicians, HR Managers or Cops?" Dr Mark Roycroft, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of East London, explores the role of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC)* through the eyes of Police and Crime Commissioners and Chief Constables.

ANALYSIS: Crime weighting is increasingly being considered as a way of measuring the harm from crime, not just the volume of it. But numbers alone, even weighted ones, can't tell the full story. Andy Higgins of the Police Foundation explores ways of making crime statistics more rich and useful.

ANALYSIS: The problem of silos between agencies in police work is well known - but what about silos within policing? A recent @wecops debate asked how silos formed and what could be done to overcome them. Former GMP ACC Ian Wiggett and Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University summarise the discussion.

ANALYSIS: Previous understandings of crowds have treated their behaviour as if it is contagious. Analysing the English riots of 2011, Dr John Drury of Sussex University argues that the spread of rioting was based more on an anti-police identity and a feeling of power after a weak police response to initial unrest.

POLICING INSIGHT EXCLUSIVE: In the third of our exclusive extracts from "Police Chiefs in the UK: Politicians, HR Managers or Cops?" Dr Mark Roycroft, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of East London, asks chiefs and crime commissioners for their views on the controversial issue of regionalisation, alliances and mergers.

ANALYSIS: The chief constables of Dorset Police and Devon & Cornwall Police have announced plans to explore further collaboration and closer working between the two forces including the possibility of a full merger. Ian Wiggett looks at what has changed since the failed force mergers plan of 2005

EXCLUSIVE SURVEY ANALYSIS: Many forces are just beginning to explore the potential and possibilities of police drone operations. The latest CoPaCC Thematic Report "Drones in Policing" surveyed drone use by UK police forces. Tina Orr-Munro analyses the results showing the extent of current capabilities and how they are being deployed

ANALYSIS: The latest of a monthly series in which CoPaCC's Sandra Andrews takes a look at some of the most interesting and topical issues that Police and Crime Panels across England and Wales are dealing with. This month, Sandra looks at anti-social behaviour (ASB) in London, and the difficulties in building multi-agency responses.

Analysis: Can greater oversight of the police complaints system bring about more public confidence and improve the way cases of discrimination are handled? Syreeta Lund writes.

POLICING INSIGHT EXCLUSIVE: The second of our exclusive and remarkably revealing extracts from Police Chiefs in the UK: Politicians, HR Managers or Cops? by Dr Mark Roycroft, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of East Anglia, explores the paucity of applications for the role of Chief Constable, as well as Chief Constables' concerns regarding the value of the direct entry recruitment scheme.

ANALYSIS: Last week, the policy think tank Reform published their report on the digital future of policing, to considerable controversy. Here, serving officer Nathan Constable and Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University argue the report is lacks evidence, academic rigour, coherence, and a basic understanding of what policing is, what people want from it, or how it is held to account.

Policing Insight EXCLUSIVE: Policing Insight has secured the exclusive rights to publish extracts from Dr Mark Roycroft's new book, "Police Chiefs in the UK: Politicians, HR Managers or Cops?", due to be published next month. In this first extract, Dr Roycroft, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of East Anglia, examines what PCCs think of Chief Constables - and vice versa.

Analysis: With digital crime accounting for nearly half of all crime, police officers and staff need the right skills to tackle it. As Reform publishes its latest report - Bobbies on the Net - one of its authors, Reform Researcher Emilie Sundorph, examines the changes required to make forces fit to fight digital crime.

Insight: Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire, David Lloyd, is working on ambitious plans to include so-called Honour Based Abuse (HBA) in future victims’ services to be delivered via Hertfordshire’s victim care centre – Beacon. Whilst reports of these crimes are rare in Hertfordshire it is likely that there is a significant number of victims that the police and other agencies are unaware of.  All victims deserve support and there is clear determination to develop a multi-agency approach to ensure that they can get it.

ANALYSIS: The ninth in a monthly series in which CoPaCC's Sandra Andrews takes a look at some of the most interesting and topical issues that Police and Crime Panels across England and Wales are dealing with. This month, Sandra looks at HMIC's inspections, force and PCC responses, and how Panels cope with often conflicting views on how their forces are performing.

Insight: West Midlands Police have reported increases in both shootings and fatal stabbings. As the force steps up its enforcement tactics, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson and his office are playing an equally vital role in helping to combat violent crime. 

Analysis: Body worn cameras are becoming the new normal in policing, but when it comes to attending incidents involving those with mental health problems, officers need to be aware of the challenges. Police Inspector Michael Brown, author of Mental Health Cop Blog, explores the issues. 

Analysis: With forces exhibiting an increasing appetite to share data, the Police Foundation recently held the second in a series of policy dinners in partnership with KPMG to examine the issue in greater depth. Attended by key stakeholders and academics, the meeting explored how data-sharing can be improved. Liz Crowhurst, former Policy Officer at the Police Foundation, summarises the main findings in a policy document.

ANALYSIS: Recent 'lone wolf' terrorist attacks have been ascribed to extremist Islamism - but is this a fair way of describing the ideology that motivates these attackers? Serving officer Martin Gallagher argues it's time to think about what the attackers really want, rather than the religion to which they claim adherence.