IN THE NEWS: This summary curates the key policing-related research that's been published online in the last week, with links to the original journal articles, and selected abstracts - plus a short guide outlining how serving police officers and staff can get access, free, to many of the articles listed through the National Police Library. You do not need to be a member of the College to access its library.

OPINION: The UK's first ever National Policing Digital Strategy was launched at the recent Police ICT Summit. Director of the National Enabling Programmes and Chair of the National Police Technology Council Wayne Parkes explores the reasons for the strategy, its ambitions, and how it can be delivered.

NEWS: The use of Artificial Intelligence in policing has raised concerns in some quarters. With the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation due to publish a new ethical framework for AI in policing in the coming months, its Executive Director Ollie Buckley says public trust will be vital to its success.

FEATURE: In the first of our new series aimed at supporting the new police degree entry recruits, Policing Insight's Academic Editor Carina O'Reilly explores the different policing approaches and the drivers for the shift towards Evidence-Based Policing (EBP).

Opinion: Policing has been accused of being the last unreformed public service. But, as President of the Police Superintendents Association Paul Griffiths reflects on his last ten years with the Association, he says change has been considerable and much has been achieved.

Advertisement Feature: Red Snapper Group (RSG) have announced a new partnership with Police Revision, an e-learning platform that provides police officers with the tools they need to progress in their police promotion exams.

Analysis: This May, in England and Wales, the public will go to the polls to elect their local Police and Crime Commissioner. Professor Peter Joyce and Dr Wendy Laverick examine the lessons to be learnt from the previous two elections in 2012 and 2016 and what prospective candidates are likely to focus on in 2020.

Analysis: As UK police are set to receive new powers to tackle the problem of illegal drone activity, Policing Insight contributor Andrew Staniforth examines the risks drones pose to our safety and security and the wider work happening to counteract them.

IN THE NEWS: This summary curates the key policing-related research that's been published online in the last week, with links to the original journal articles, and selected abstracts - plus a short guide outlining how serving police officers and staff can get access, free, to many of the articles listed through the National Police Library. You do not need to be a member of the College to access its library.

Analysis: Lord Carlile's removal as the independent reviewer of the counter-terror Prevent strategy following a legal challenge has left the Government in a difficult position. With just eight months until the Review must, by law, be completed and its findings shared, Policing Insight contributor Andrew Staniforth explores the challenges ahead.

Analysis: Last week's police funding settlement - the biggest increase in police funding for a decade - has been welcomed by many in the service. While the headline figures are impressive, former Assistant Chief Constable and now CoPaCC Director Ian Wiggett takes a closer look and finds some questions still need to be answered.

SPOTLIGHT ON THE WINNERS: A force-wide initiative to equip officers with smartphones and develop apps that maximise the benefits of mobile working was recognised as a winner at the recent inaugural World Class Policing Awards sponsored by Accenture. In the fourth of twelve articles focusing on the award-winning nominations, Keith Potter takes a closer look at the New Zealand Police Mobility Programme.

Opinion: With police forces across the UK now faced with the task of recruiting an additional 20,000 officers, Policing Insight Contributor Andrew Staniforth says the service should seize the opportunity to recruit more creative thinkers for the benefit of policing.

NEWS: The Police ICT Summit is held every year, but this year’s event is set to be a milestone with the publication of the service’s first national digital strategy for policing. Policing Insight reports from the conference.

IN THE NEWS: This summary curates the key policing-related research that's been published online in the last week, with links to the original journal articles, and selected abstracts - plus a short guide outlining how serving police officers and staff can get access, free, to many of the articles listed through the National Police Library. You do not need to be a member of the College to access its library.

INSIGHT: This week’s Police ICT Summit will see suppliers, police buyers and stakeholders discuss current challenges and develop solutions. But where are the voices of the end users in this process? And could a greater focus on user experience help to solve existing challenges as well as develop more effective long-term solutions?

OPINION: The annual Police ICT Summit takes place this week in Manchester, bringing together the key players who can together agree and deliver a roadmap for police ICT across England and Wales. Policing Insight Publisher Bernard Rix calls on those at the Summit to focus on finding common ground, rather than emphasising their differences.

Insight: With the annual Police ICT Summit set to take place this week in Manchester, Policing Insight asked senior police leaders, police suppliers and stakeholders for their views on the biggest challenges for Police ICT and what they are hoping to see emerge from this year's conference.

opinion: There are 43 Home Office ‘funded’ police forces in England and Wales out of a total of around 50 law enforcement agencies across the United Kingdom. Darren Scates, Chief Technology Officer for the Metropolitan Police Service, offers his personal view on how to deliver technology more effectively in this distributed environment, and asks: "Can we increase the success rate of projects and programmes?"

opinion: Dialling 999 remains the traditional way to contact the police in an emergency, but with demand rising and the public increasingly turning to messaging apps, could chatbots offer policing an affordable alternative to managing demand? Futr A.I.'s Client Services Director Martin Scoble explores the chatbots' potential.

Opinion: The major influx of new recruits into policing is a perfect opportunity to improve BAME representation in the police service, but Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner for West Midlands Police Waheed Saleem argues it will require a fundamental overhaul of the service's approach to recruitment.

Opinion: Several UK forces have begun to adopt mobile biometric fingerprinting ID devices. In the United States, FBI field officers already carry these devices as a standard part of their kit. Eleanor Benson of Integrated Biometrics (IB) explains the benefits of the technology to policing and the public.

SPOTLIGHT ON THE WINNERS: A UK policing initiative to disrupt and prevent crime by combining targeted intelligence with enhanced use of technology and specialist training was, after achieving significant successes across two county forces, recognised as a winner at the recent inaugural World Class Policing Awards sponsored by Accenture. In the third of 12 articles focusing on the award-winning nominations, Keith Potter takes a closer look at Operation Moonshot.

Analysis: The widespread bush fires in Australia have focused attention on how emergency services respond to large scale incidents caused by extreme weather. With incidents such as these set to become increasingly common, Policing Insight Contributor Andrew Staniforth looks at how the EU is tackling the threat to public safety posed by climate change.