Analysis

News Feature: Forces need to prepare for another surge in hate crime and make sure victims are confident to report incidents as the deadline approaches for invoking Article 50 this month and Britain negotiates its exit from the European Union, according to a national charity tackling the issue across the UK.

ANALYSIS: Recent revelations of abuse by football coaches highlights the vulnerability of children to exploitation. But are the police as well prepared as they could be to deal with such allegations? Dr Graham Hill, founder of Behaviour Analysis at the UK Child Exploitation Online Protection centre (CEOP), argues that police need to improve their understanding of why perpetrators abuse children, if they are to improve child protection.

ANALYSIS: The Scottish Police Authority and Police Scotland have set out their strategy for policing in Scotland over the next ten years - Policing 2026. Independent researcher Kath Murray analyses the strategy and what it really means in the long term for policing in Scotland.

News feature: Police officers’ understanding of fraud and cyber crime needs to match their ability to respond to and investigate ‘mainstream’ offences such as theft and burglary if the service is to fulfil its primary role of keeping the public safe, according to the City of London Police.

Feature: As the shortage of detectives reaches crisis levels, according to HMIC, some forces are turning to direct entry schemes to fill the gap, amid concerns the scheme ignores the value of time spent in a uniform and resources are already too stretched to successfully implement the programme. 

Analysis: Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner and NHS England's new £15m jointly-commissioned service to support vulnerable detainees and reduce re-offending is the first of its kind and is already attracting considerable interest, but can it deliver on its promises? 

ANALYSIS: HMIC last week published their latest PEEL report, on police effectiveness. Crime expert and author Tom Gash provides his thoughts on the analysis they've presented.

ANALYSIS: Research on body-worn cameras has shown mixed results. Oh the one hand, complaints against police officers dropped spectacularly when the cameras were used; but on the other, rates of assault against officers during arrest were actually higher. Dr Alex Sutherland of RAND Europe examines police discretion as part of the explanation for these different outcomes.

ANALYSIS: Owen Boswarva is an open data activist with a background in risk analysis. In this article, Owen examines whether spending data currently published by PCCs meets the minimum criteria for open data. Which PCCs meet this minimum standard? Read on...

ANALYSIS: Is the way that we think about domestic abuse fit for purpose? Simon Kerss of Cambridgeshire County Council argues we need to differentiate between different types of domestic violence – and calls for a revision of national police guidance that will help forces break away from a monolithic response.

ANALYSIS: Ian Wiggett charts the rise of the Neighbourhood Policing model and examines its future as forces try to square the circle between resources and demand, specialisms and neighbourhoods

ANALYSIS: As the debate over spit hoods continues, Graham Hooper of Canterbury Christ Church University briefly outlines the competing claims of those in favour and against their use.

ANALYSIS: Though football crowd violence is less of a critical issue in the UK than it was in the 1980s, it remains a key concern in countries such as Sweden. Professor Clifford Stott outlines how partnership between academics and police forces has led to the development of theory and practice in reducing crowd violence, and flags up an upcoming CPD event at Keele University.

ANALYSIS: DCC Louisa Rolfe oversees West Midlands Police's WMP2020 change programme that features 33 individual projects designed to make the force more agile when fighting crime and more accessible to the public. Here, she explains how the force's innovative collaboration with Accenture is progressing.

ANALYSIS: Her Majesty The Queen last week opened the operational nerve centre known as the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to manage cyber incidents. Michael Shuff, Marketing Lead at PA Consulting's specialist cyber security arm, 7Safe, takes a look at the NCSC's role.

ANALYSIS: Last week the Police Foundation published its latest paper, A Natural Experiment in Neighbourhood Policing, from its Police Effectiveness in a Changing World project. Andy Higgins of the Foundation outlines the ramifications for neighbourhood policing, as the Foundation launches its new research project to explore its future.

ANALYSIS: The Home Affairs Select Committee has recently launched an inquiry into policing for the future, examining changing demands and new challenges. In the first of two articles for Policing Insight, crime expert and author Tom Gash suggests the Committee needs to focus their attention on cybercrime.

ANALYSIS: Should policing become a 'profession'? What does that mean for serving officers and their sense of themselves as professionals? Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University and Dr Ian Hesketh, Senior Advisor to the College of Policing, unpick the College's radical mission to professionalise the police service.

ANALYSIS: The Home Affairs Select Committee has recently launched an inquiry into policing for the future, examining changing demands and new challenges. In the first of two articles for Policing Insight, crime expert and author Tom Gash suggests the Committee needs to focus their attention on cybercrime.

ANALYSIS: Why are there so few applicants for many senior police jobs? Following the publication earlier this week of College of Policing research into the issue, Gavin Hales of the Police Foundation describes his own findings on the barriers to promotion at chief officer level.

Analysis: In 2015, the National Audit Office revealed forces were sitting on nearly £2bn in reserves sparking media outrage. Two years on and it is a very different story. Policing Insight reports on how forces are using their reserves to secure their finances and fund their futures.

ANALYSIS: Headline figures from the Police Federation's recent survey of officer welfare show shocking levels of demand, overwhelming workload, and stress-related illness. Here, Mary Elliot-Davies of the Federation outlines the key findings and what comes next in the Fed's campaign for change.

ANALYSIS: Earlier this week, the Reform Think Tank published a new report examining the public-sector workforce of the future. Here, Reform's Alexander Hitchcock and Emilie Sundorph examine the implications of this report for policing.

ANALYSIS: Ian Wiggett, CoPaCC Director and former Greater Manchester Police ACC, reflects on the current state of police ICT, and argues that much greater collaboration on ICT between forces is urgently needed.