Features

OPINION: Youth offending in Victoria is rising, burglary is at record levels, and retail theft is the fastest-growing crime category, yet the prevailing response remains largely reactive; evidence from Victoria’s own prevention programs shows that upstream investment in youth justice produces measurable reductions in offending, says strategy and reform consultant Kavitha Vipulananda – the harder question is whether the structural conditions exist to deliver it at scale.

FEATURE: A ‘deep dive’ review of the multi-agency safeguarding responses to county lines exploitation and serious youth violence has highlighted the “vast and complex landscape” around safeguarding children and young people, with fragmented strategies, gaps in legislation, and a reluctance among young-in-service police officers to undertake foot patrols all contributing to an ongoing “perfect storm” of continued child exploitation, as Sarah Gibbons reports.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: On 19th June, Westminster Insight is bringing together senior policing leaders, technologists, researchers, and governance professionals for a half-day conference on where AI in policing currently stands and where it needs to go.

OPINION: The Metropolitan Police’s recent use of Palantir AI to identify more than 600 officers involved in wrongdoing and corruption may have been successful in its aims, but has also proved controversial; police officer and ethics specialist Dr Richard Cockbain warns that while the approach may have achieved compliance benefits, addressing unethical behaviour is not the same as building ethical approaches, and the covert deployment of AI serves to undermine the trust of both the public and the workforce.

FEATURE: A new study into the wellbeing of disaster victim identification (DVI) officers has highlighted the “moral dissonance” experienced by staff that can contribute to stress and psychological strain, the continuing stigma of seeking help and support for their mental wellbeing, and the damaging impact that the media’s glamourisation of crime scene investigation can have on new DVI recruits whose expectations are far removed from the reality of deployment, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: The recent Domestic Homicide Project report highlights that, for the third year running, suspected victim suicides following domestic abuse in England and Wales have overtaken the number of homicides involving current or previous partners; Policing Lecturer Lee Curran, of the Liverpool Centre for Advanced Policing Studies at Liverpool John Moores University, explores the vital role police officers have to play in recognising the links between domestic abuse and suicide, and the potential for early intervention.

FEATURE: At INTERPOL’s annual Heads of National Central Bureaux Conference last month, one of the most insightful updates was on the results of Operation Thunder, the operation to intercept and seize illegally traded wildlife and forestry commodities across the global supply chain, and identify, disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks involved, as Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth reports.

INTERVIEW: Ahead of this month’s American Society of Evidence-Based Policing Conference, American University Associate Professor Dr Janice Iwama spoke to Policing Insight’s Christine Townsend about her research into how peer support programmes are designed and delivered in practice, the need to view them as part of wider organisational culture, and why such initiatives require ongoing attention to training and support.

OPINION: The future communications for the UK’s emergency services should not be a choice between TETRA or broadband, argues Ian Waddell Vice-President of International Managed & Support Services at Motorola Solutions, but both and more, with a hybrid solution that combines the best of tried and trusted capabilities with the latest technologies of today.

INTERVIEW: Forces across England and Wales need to give a greater priority to vehicle theft and recognise it as often a key component in organised crime, says Surrey Assistant Chief Constable Sarah Grahame, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on vehicle crime, who spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the growing focus on ports to target the many stolen cars and parts shipped overseas, and the need to collaborate more closely with industry and technology partners.

OPINION: With proposed policing reform in England and Wales indicating a move towards a combination of a national police service, regional forces and local policing areas, Capgemini Director Jamie Robinson explores the experiences of the Dutch transition from regional police forces to the Dutch National Police in 2013, and considers what lessons there could be from the Netherlands for the UK’s reform process.

FEATURE: An independent review of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), commissioned by Chief Constable Jon Boutcher and carried out by leading barrister Rachel Langdale KC, has acknowledged the efforts of officers across the force in tackling violence against women and girls, but warns that much more needs to be done to tackle the “clear evidence of sexism and misogyny within the PSNI”, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Public events can escalate quickly, with disruption, misinformation, and online agitation creating real challenges for police forces. In this article, Fivecast’s David Janson examines how social media intelligence helps investigators identify risks earlier, understand intent, and support safer, more proportionate policing of events.

OPINION: A Boston police officer has been charged with manslaughter following the recent fatal shooting of an unarmed man, and body camera footage is expected to be crucial in the case; however, the fact that despite widespread calls the footage has not been released highlights the challenges around claims that body-word cameras provide transparency and accountability, as well as the police and public’s different understanding of those concepts, says Brandon University’s Professor Christopher J. Schneider.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Ahead of next month’s SAS webinar on trusted AI for policing, Policing Insight spoke with former long-serving Queensland Police officer John Kilburn about the real impact of AI in law enforcement. The discussion highlights the opportunities AI presents, and the critical need for agencies to be clear about their objectives; it also reinforces that the true value of AI is only realised when underpinned by strong governance, defined guardrails, and complete transparency, building trust within both the police workforce and the communities they serve.

INTERVIEW: Following the launch of the UK’s National Knife Crime Centre (NKCC), Commander Stephen Clayman, the officer leading the centre, spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the role of the NKCC, efforts to “join up the dots” to tackle the sale and importation of knives, and the need to improve both data collection and understanding around knife crime.

OPINION: With police and law enforcement agencies increasingly looking to artificial intelligence (AI) to leverage benefits for public safety, former Colorado State Patrol chief Jim Wolfinbarger, now Vice-President of Real-Time Intelligence at Motorola Solutions, explores how role-based AI can help to convert disparate information into focused, actionable streams of intelligence that strengthen decision-making and risk management.

FEATURE: A recent report into how organisations can maximise value from their technology investments highlights the paradox that many pour investment into new and shiny technology without addressing the impact of the legacy systems that are the biggest barrier to effective digital transformation; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth says the report has clear messages for policing, particularly in the UK where major reform is on the horizon.

INTERVIEW: Following the recent launch of the UK Government’s new Road Safety Strategy, former senior police officer Ruth Purdie, CEO of the Road Safety Trust, spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the need for more support for policing’s role in preventing and detecting crime on the roads, alongside “system-wide” change, better sharing of best practice and greater use of technology, if the strategy is to be implemented effectively.

ANALYSIS: With responsibility for the Police Race Action Plan (PRAP) for England and Wales now shifting from a central team to individual forces, Policing Insight’s Ian Weinfass examines the impact and legacy of the work done over the past five years, and speaks to stakeholders about the role of leadership and how the PRAP should be shaping policing in the future.

OPINION: In the final part of the series of articles exploring UK policing’s software landscape, organisational psychologist Michael Stephenson looks at the challenges and opportunities offered by policing’s largest technology supplier – Microsoft – and questions whether policing’s relationship with the US tech giant needs to be significantly restructured as part of modernisation and reform process.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Police reform in the UK is placing safeguarding outcomes under increasing scrutiny, with a strong focus on prevention, consistency, and accountability particularly in tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG). As demand grows, forces must modernise how risk is assessed and acted upon. Ben Jarvis explores how data and AI can strengthen safeguarding processes such as Clare’s Law to deliver faster, more consistent decisions aligned with reform priorities.

FEATURE: The latest National Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised crime, published by the UK’s National Crime Agency, highlights the potential for conflicts and wider “geopolitical instability” to provide “fertile ground” for exploitation by organised crime groups (OCGs), while the growth in online crime and the impact of overseas OCGs on UK communities and security represent significant threats, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: A study into the policing of organised crime in London by Open University Criminologist Dr Sarah Hutton suggests that while “disruption” has become a central metric in UK law enforcements efforts to tackle organised crime, it is a concept that is rarely measured or validated, resulting in a claim rather than proving a demonstrable reduction in criminality, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.