Opinion

OPINION: Ahead of the inaugural Police Governance Summit this week, one of our conference contributors, Ann Reeder, CEO of Frontline Consulting Associates which leads a national project with Police and Crime Panels and the new Police, Fire and Crime Panels, examines the role of PCPs and the challenges ahead.

Opinion: Do you have a fixed mindset? In our continuing series of articles aimed at supporting you in the workplace, Jonathan Rees, owner of Momoho and an expert in developing high-performing teams in the bluelight sector, looks at how mindset influences you and your team's performance. 

BOOK REVIEW: Independent Chair of Lincolnshire Police Ethics Panel Cate Moore finds Professor Kevin Morrell and Professor Ben Bradford's 'Policing and Public Management: Governance, Vices and Virtues' takes a fresh approach to some familiar problems.

Interview: As Rob Wainwright leaves his post as director of Europol to take up a new role with Deloitte, he tells Policing Insight how better intelligence sharing has changed the face of cross- border counter-terror and child sexual exploitation investigations and how it could do the same for financial crime.

Interview: Vanessa Soames, Graduate Recruitment Director, at Police Now, has spent nearly 18 years working in student recruitment. She joined Police Now two years ago, where she developed a new recruitment campaign to attract diverse graduates into policing, especially graduates who would never have thought of joining the police. She tells Policing Insight about the campaign and why the Police Service needs it.

Opinion: According to Big Brother Watch's report on facial recognition technology, a system deployed by South Wales Police at a football match generated a  92% False Positive Rate. Founder and CEO of facial recognition company Allevate Ltd Carl Gohringer puts the record straight on how the technology works and what the figures mean.

OPINION: Other European countries face football-related violence - and often respond to it in similar ways to the UK. However, ENABLE, a research project on football policing, is seeking to explore new ways of policing football fans. Ch. Supt. Owen West describes the project's latest visit to see how Swiss police deal with their 'Ultras'.

OPINION: The Metropolitan Police's use of a 'gang matrix' has sparked concern from Amnesty International, which has warned that it could be discriminatory. Daragh Murray and Professor Pete Fussey of the University of Essex explore the issue, and the wider human rights risks of using big data in policing.

Opinion: To coincide with National Mental Health Awareness Week, Kent Police and Crime Commissioner and national mental health lead for Police and Crime Commissioners Matthew Scott details some of the work going on nationally and in Kent to try to reduce the time police officers are spending dealing with cases involving mental health.

Opinion: With Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) now increasingly used in law enforcement, Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham says there are many unanswered questions as to how it is deployed, raising concerns about the lack of transparency and governance around its use.

OPINION: Homelessness has risen across the country. In the West Midlands, it has tripled over the last eight years. In a co-authored article, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson and Policy Officer Ben Twomey believe it is essential the police service offers the hand of friendship to those in need.

OPINION: Not being able to trace the identity of a private landlord can have real consequences for police - and for local residents. Ron Hogg, PCC for Durham, explains why he is backing a Private Member's Bill to make mandatory the registration of private landlords.

INTERVIEW: Director of Staff Absence Solutions Ltd Mark Eastwood has worked in the rail industry for many years treating employees following traumatic rail-related incidents. Now working with police forces, Mr Eastwood tells Policing Insight how, with the right support, officers and staff can recover from psychological and physiological conditions caused by work.

INTERVIEW: Exclusive: Greater collaboration and more licensing agreements are high on the new head of the Police ICT Company’s to-do list. CEO Ian Bell outlines the direction of travel for the company.

OPINION: The murder of Stephen Lawrence 25 years ago changed Britain - and British policing - for good. Benjamin Bowling, Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, King's College London, recalls the case, and reflects on the challenges still facing policing today.

OPINION: Locard’s Exchange Principle is based on the idea that every contact leaves a trace and is taught on almost every forensic science course around the globe. Veteran Army Commando and MD of Selfless Leadership Paul Kinkaid applies the principle to leadership and examines what 'traces' make a great leader.

OPINION: International policing missions are complex and challenging, and it is difficult for practitioners to share lessons from the ground. A workshop in Lisbon last year brought together experts from the field. Dr Georgina Sinclair of Strategic Expertise International introduces the background to the workshop, and its outputs - a set of essays that Policing Insight is now serialising.

OPINION: Policing is stressful at the best of times, but right now it seems to be under pressure from all sides. Serving officer Sgt. Harry Tangye ponders what advice would he give to someone thinking of joining the police today.

Opinion: CCTV of a mentally ill man being sprayed with capsicum spray, pinned to the ground by six police officers and hit with a baton in Melbourne quickly went viral, appalling many including Dr Isabelle Bartkowiak-Théron of the Tasmanian Institute of Law Enforcement Studies who works closely with the Australian police. She asks what can we learn from this.

Opinion: CCTV technology has been in place for many years now so why the need for super recognisers? Former DCI and now CEO of Super Recognisers International Mike Neville explains how super recognisers add value to CCTV imagery, linking crimes and even identifying terror suspects.

OPINION: Policing is a service that should be held to the highest standards, but constant attacks from the media and politicians reflect a shallow understanding of the job. Ashley Kilgallon, a doctoral researcher at the University of Leeds, warns that such simplistic critiques are legitimising the destruction of a public service.

OPINION: As London suffers an epidemic of knife crime, and more officers break under the strain, the government narrative still appears to be unrelentingly negative. Former Chief Superintendent John Sutherland warns that it is time to confront this, and to talk realistically about what we want from police and policing.

OPINION: Police interviewing methods, often heralded as good practice, can be unhelpful when used with people with autism. Retired officer Phil Morris, who now delivers specialist training in this area, shares his own journey to understanding the best approach to those with autism. 

OPINION: Firearms simulation training has come a long way since its clunky beginnings. Andrew Dann from Dann Developments explains how the training has evolved, what's on the market and how forces can make the most of what's on offer.