Cheshire Constabulary’s ambitious deployment of NiCE Evidencentral

Established in 1857, Cheshire Constabulary is a police force in North-West England, comprising of nine Local Policing Units; Chester, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Macclesfield, Northwich, Runcorn, Warrington and Widnes. More than 2,000 officers are responsible for policing 946 square miles (2,450 km2) and a population of approximately 1 million people across the county’s rural villages, industrial towns and cathedral city.

The Challenge

Cheshire Constabulary ensures that police technology develops to service the needs of the public of Cheshire and appropriately support the officers and staff of the constabulary. The Constabulary continues to embrace technology, helping the organisation to drive efficiencies as well as introducing innovative ways of working. This is helping to improve collaboration with judicial partners, through the implementation of new capabilities, such as a Digital Evidence Management system (DEMs) through NiCE Evidencentral.

With neighbouring and nearby forces such as Lancashire, Merseyside and North Wales, all having deployed NiCE Evidencentral – the team at Cheshire Constabulary had a wealth of local experience to call upon when they too decided to roll out the technology in August 2023.

The Solution

The first phase of Cheshire Constabulary’s project started in August 2023 and began with the integration of five of the constabulary’s core technology systems, with all data being automatically imported into NiCE Evidencentral – NicheRMS365 records management system; Reveal body worn cameras; Saab SAFE command and control system; the existing NiCE Inform application (part of Evidencentral) used to record 999 and 101 calls; and the David Horn interview recordings platform.

The initial focus was on transforming the process officers experience in relation to the collection of CCTV footage and preparing evidence to share digitally with the Crime Prosecution Service (CPS). Following the successful completion of this phase, attention turned to expanding the use of the system.

Phase 2

Building on the implementation success, Dan Jackson, NiCE Business Support Administrator, and Carter began Phase 2 in January 2024. Phase 2 – an ambitious follow-up – focused on unlocking new efficiencies and streamlining processes identified by the phase 1 implementation team. Among the extensive list of deliverables, several standout as particularly noteworthy:

Forensics

Crime scene investigators have moved away from burning and sending evidence by physical discs to NiCE Evidencentral to manage evidence efficiently and securely.

Before moving to NiCE Evidencentral, CSI would take images at the scene, return to their base, and burn the images to two disks. One disc was sent to deep store (master-copy), and the other disc would be kept for a year (working) within the department before being sent to deep-store.

Instead, NiCE Evidencentral allows for real-time uploading of forensic evidence, eliminating the delays and risks associated with physical discs. It also provides appropriate retention rules, a clear chain of custody and more effective team collaboration.

Cheshire Constabulary forensics testimonial: “CSI have been using NiCE and have seen efficiency gains and improved information sharing both within the force and with external agencies. Within our department, it has allowed for time, cost and physical storage savings when compared to the previous process of burning image discs. NiCE is incredibly user friendly and its roll out across the department and beyond has been very smooth. It has allowed us to securely share relevant information with policing teams and third parties in a timely manner which benefits the wider investigation.”

Counter Terrorism Policing North West (CTPNW)

Officers working for Counter Terrorism Policing often require Digital Media Evidence urgently in a bid to prevent serious incidents. This is particularly important when it is believed that a person may be conducting Hostile Reconnaissance at a location in readiness for an attack.

The Counter Terrorism Network spans the length and breadth of the country. Prior to the implementation of NiCE Evidencentral officers were regularly required to travel significant distances – often on extremely tight timeframes – to collect and assess this evidence.

Thanks to the implementation of NiCE, officers can now receive footage and make these crucial time-sensitive assessments within minutes, without even leaving their desks.

Protecting Vulnerable People

By automating the collection, analysis and sharing of digital evidence, NiCE Evidencentral enables officers to respond more quickly and effectively to crimes involving at-risk and vulnerable people. NiCE Evidencentral ensures the integrity of evidence handling and supports early intervention.

Phase 2 of the project has also seen the onboarding of the Constabulary’s Major Investigation Team, Drones team, North-West Ambulance Service and Evidence Gathering Team.

Today, the Project Team are focused on delivering greater benefits using NiCE Evidencentral. Evaluations continue into the positive impact that NiCE Evidencentral is having.

Dan Jackson recalls: “We are introducing mobile functionality to assist our front-line officers to do more at the scene, as well as using public appeals, and continuing to work with businesses, to request and receive evidence through the NiCE Community Portal.”

Significant progress has been made during Phase 2: “We have been using NiCE Evidencentral for just over a year, and our officers have shared many positive experiences using the system. They love the user friendliness of the system and how it helps them to be more efficient,” concludes Jackson.