Opinion: A Crest Advisory report has revealed overwhelming support for the UK police's approach to policing the pandemic. Crisis Communication Consultant Amanda Coleman says now is the time to build community involvement into the communication strategy, laying the foundations for how the next generation view the police.

ANALYSIS: As law enforcement across the world adjusts to policing the pandemic, Associate Professor Terry Goldsworthy and Assistant Professor Robyn Lincoln from Bond University explore the role the Australian police forces play in managing this crisis.

Advertisement Feature: Police forces have been given unprecedented powers to help reduce the spread of coronavirus but face challenges in reducing their own risk of infection whilst carrying out their duties. Jamie Wilson of NICE Public Safety explains how using a Digital Evidence Management System can help and invites those concerned to attend a free webinar on Wednesday, 15th April at 10am UK / 11pm CET / 7pm AEST.

ADVERTISEMENT: PolicingPeople is a new technology solution for interim police recruitment, launched today. PolicingPeople Managing Director, Ian Tomson-Smith, explains how this new initiative can help police forces worldwide meet the challenge of Covid-19. Have you got relevant skills and experience? Register your availability now to "Play Your Part".

INTERVIEW: Norfolk Constabulary axed the Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) role two years ago as part of a wider initiative to improve service delivery and reduce costs by 2020. Despite increased funding, the drive to recruit more officers and the NPCC and College of Policing's commitment to the role, Norfolk Chief Constable Simon Bailey tells Policing Insight why PCs, not PCSOs, are the way forward.  

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.

INTERVIEW: As cybercrime continues to rise, Policing Insight talks to Superintendent Rebecca Chapman, Director of the North East Business Resilience Centre (NEBRC), a unique partnership between police, big business and universities to help protect smaller businesses from the threat of online crime.

OPINION: Dr Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University provides her review of the #WeCops Twitter debate last week, examining UK police's response to the Coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic.

Opinion: Whilst the police are highly adept at managing emergency calls, data on the many other reasons people call the police is lacking. Crisis Communication Consultant Amanda Coleman, who has more than twenty years experience in law enforcement communications, says it is this detail that is needed for a truly effective call-handling response.

Opinion: In her most recent blog, director of Transform Justice Penelope Gibbs considers the issue of police custody for adults who have been arrested and detained and offers suggestions on how to keep this to a minimum during the Covid-19 crisis.

ANALYSIS: Just twelve days ago, Policing Insight established an International Advisory Board (IAB), to help shape our contribution to policing's global response to Coronavirus Covid-19. Here, Policing Insight's Publisher, Bernard Rix, provides an early update on the IAB's work.

OPINION: Deloitte's Public Safety lead in the Gulf region, Andrew Morley, examines how police and other public safety agencies in the Middle East might respond to Covid-19. There are already very significant demands placed upon these agencies in enforcing the critical public health measures introduced to limit the spread of the Covid-19 virus - but is there more?

Opinion: Data is the 'oxygen' of decision-making and is potentially at its most powerful when it integrated with other data. Former Deputy Chief Constable and now strategic adviser on digital policing transformation Paul Kennedy and Managing Director of Microsoft software development company Black Marble Robert Hogg explore how forces can better integrate their data sets to improve outcomes.

Analysis: UK police officers have been given unprecedented powers to curtail personal freedoms as the nation attempts to slow the spread of Covid-19. Former Ch Supt Owen West and Dr Matthew Radburn examine the potential for the principles of procedural justice to enable officers to exercise these powers without alienating the populace.

NEWS: The Coronavirus Act 2020 introduces sweeping powers for public services to tackle the pandemic, but has neglected to include Police and Crime Panels, whose role it is to scrutinise Police and Crime Commissioners, among the list of local authority bodies that can still meet to carry out their work. Policing Insight reports.

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: CoPaCC Director and former chief officer Ian Wiggett examines the policing response to the Covid-19 and what the 'new normal' could look like for policing in the weeks to come.

SPOTLIGHT ON THE WINNERS: An operation led by Dubai Police’s Anti-Narcotics Unit, which smashed an international smuggling ring and led to the United Arab Emirates’ largest drugs seizure, was awarded Highly Commended in the World Class Policing Awards, sponsored by Accenture. In the ninth of twelve articles focusing on the award-winning nominations, Keith Potter takes a closer look at this innovative and collaborative operation.

OPINION: Andy Rhodes QPM is the Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary, and the National Police Chiefs' Council lead for well being and staff engagement. Here, he provides his thoughts on the organisational impact of Covid-19 on policing and how leaders can make the coming weeks easier for their staff.

Job advertisement: Police Lecturer vacancies at Babcock International for their new flagship contract partnering with several Higher Education Institutes across London to deliver the new Metropolitan Police Service Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) framework.

Analysis: With UK police forces struggling to recruit and retain cyber-skilled staff, Policing Insight contributor Andrew Staniforth considers what this means for the war against cyber crime and why so many digitally skilled staff are opting for a career in the private sector.

OPINION: Policing Insight's Publisher, Bernard Rix, considers whether the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic will irrevocably damage British policing's "policing by consent" model first set out by Sir Robert Peel in 1829. Can policing emerge all the stronger for the societal challenges the virus will bring?

Analysis: The UK has a wealth of experience in contingency planning, but Covid-19 is unprecedented in terms of scale and complexity. Drawing on interviews with senior contingency planners about the response so far, Professor Clifford Stott and former Chief Superintendent Owen West outline current challenges and offer preliminary recommendations to help navigate the weeks ahead.

FEATURE: In our continuing series aimed at supporting the new police degree entry recruits, Policing Insight's Academic Editor Carina O'Reilly explores other types of evidence and how selecting the right kind of research depends on the question you are trying to answer.