United Kingdom

INNOVATION: A College of Policing evaluation of the use of enhanced video response to a range of calls coming in from the public to Avon and Somerset Police suggests that the approach could lead to significant improvements in response times, investigative standards, and overall case duration, as well as greater victim satisfaction and reduced stress and workloads for many officers taking part, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: With police forces facing crime challenges at national and international levels, the 43-force structure across England and Wales can present a barrier to speedy and effective interventions; NTT DATA UK&I Executive Head of Public Safety and Justice Ian Rimington, Senior Director Brian Cliff, and Director Keith Ward, argue that closer digital collaboration between neighbouring forces would preserve local independence while giving officers the speed, clarity and unity of purpose to face crime that moves without borders.

ANALYSIS: In the second in a series of articles on male officer mental health in policing, accredited psychological therapist Dr Rachel Rogers explores why male police officers often delay so long before asking for help, the consequential “cuts” that can result from seeking support, the culture that further deepens those wounds, and why labels such as “sick, lame and lazy” become more than just words.

FEATURE: Crime scene investigators (CSIs) are exposed to traumatic scenes more frequently than most other policing roles, yet are often overlooked when it comes to debriefing and wellbeing intervention, according to Anglia Ruskin University’s Rebecca Jones and Varvara Belova, whose research – shared as part of last month’s Investigator Wellbeing Week of Action – highlights the urgent need for improved support around CSI mental health, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Latest research from Cardiff University and the Stamp Out Spiking charity highlights the scale of spiking across the UK, the various methods used, and most worryingly the fact that around three-quarters of victims don’t report the crime to police; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the insights already emerging from this research, as well as other seasonal initiatives to keep the public safe during the festive season.

ANALYSIS: Fraud is now the most common form of crime across the world, and the impact on victims can be devasting, but in many countries it remains a low policing priority; recent research by Dr Rasha Kassem, who leads Aston University’s Fraud Research Group, and Professor Umut Turksen of the University of Exeter, highlights that structural reforms and extra funding alone are unlikely to shift the balance to improve the response to fraud, unless policing can redefine value, harm and legitimacy in its daily practice.

INNOVATION: An evidence-based review of Thames Valley Police’s deployment of its Tactical Cycle unit in public order operations is calling on the College of Policing to develop Authorised Professional Practice for the approach, in an effort to encourage other forces in England and Wales to adopt the agile and versatile resource that can also improve public engagement and build trust and confidence, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: In the latest in The Police Student series focusing on Community and Neighbourhood Policing, Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly looks at the background to and emergence of neighbourhood policing, its role in supporting confidence and legitimacy, and why the approach is likely to continue to change in response to political, economic and social pressures.

REPORT LAUNCH: A new thematic report exploring how the issue of domestic abuse and family violence is being tackled across the world, how this has changed, and how it continues to evolve, has been launched by Policing Insight; the report examines the innovations, legal reforms and persistent challenges around the responses to domestic abuse and family violence, as agencies strive to protect victims, reduce demand and prevent further tragedy.

OPINION: While the recent Blue Lights TV drama set in Northern Ireland may have been pure fiction, former police superintendent Martin Gallagher, now an author and terrorism expert, believes that scenarios that played out in the latest series highlighted some of the key challenges facing policing today, and reinforced the need to “reconsider the figurative handcuffs” and allow officers to successfully undertake what is often “a hard, dirty and dangerous job”.

FEATURE: A recent independent review into structural racism within the Metropolitan Police has warned that the organisation’s systems and culture “align to maintain, rather than dismantle, the conditions that cause racial harm”, and that major structural change will be needed to remove the systemic racism that is “baked in” to the design of the institution if efforts to tackle the problem are to be successful in the long term, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

INNOVATION: Automation and digitisation are delivering increased efficiency and other benefits across wider society, and there are significant potential gains for UK policing and the criminal justice system; police and technology advisor Paul Kennedy, and former Detective Inspector Tina Macleod, an out-of-court resolutions (OoCRs) specialist, explore some of the opportunities arising for policing and criminal justice across a range of areas, and take a closer look at how the use of OoCRs could be transformed by the new technology.

INNOVATION: A new film produced to help police and other professionals recognise cuckooing and understand the perspectives of ‘alpha victims’ – young victims who go on to become offenders themselves – is due to be trialled by police forces shortly, as the latest addition to a wider toolkit to help practitioners identify and act on the risks and vulnerabilities around the issue, as Dr Laura Bainbridge, Associate Professor in Criminal Justice at the University of Leeds, explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

FEATURE: A recently foiled plot to assassinate Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever is the latest attempt by terrorists to use 3D printers and drones to create potentially deadly weapons to carry out attacks; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at examples of terrorists employing such technology, the availability of components and manuals to undertake such operations, and what can be done to tackle these threats.

INTERVIEW: Following the Government’s announcement last month that the role of police and crime commissioner will be abolished in 2028, Emily Spurrell, Chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, spoke to Policing Insight’s Ian Weinfass about why she believes the Home Office is wrong to overhaul police governance in England and Wales, why it will not save the money cited, and how it could damage other areas of policing.

OPINION: Despite growing momentum across society for the increased use of artificial intelligence (AI), policing – like many other sectors – is proving to be big on ambition but slow on adoption of the new technology; Martin Taylor, Co-Founder and Deputy CEO of Content Guru, explores the reasons behind the slow adoption, the challenges around public trust and confidence, and how the successful introduction of AI into critical healthcare communications could provide lessons for policing.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Facial recognition has become an essential technology for law enforcement and government agencies. Retrospective facial recognition system is an ideal tool for this fast-paced world, because it helps officers to identify suspects in a fraction of the time.

FEATURE: A new tutor constable training programme launched by the College of Policing for forces in England and Wales aims to professionalise a role that is often overlooked, while delivering public benefits by ensuring new recruits receive the right guidance, and improve retention and cut costs through reducing the number of early-in-service resignations, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: An update on Police Scotland’s Policing Together programme, launched in 2021 to deliver “long-term tangible impact” on a wide variety of equality and diversity issues, reveals improvements on a range of inclusivity and community representation measures, higher levels of satisfaction with police-public interactions, and reduction in the use of force, officer injuries and complaints, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: A recent report by the Vulnerability & Policing Futures Research Centre which explores the responses to family violence and domestic abuse in Victoria Police and Greater Manchester Police has highlighted the continuing challenges around successfully implementing support and change programmes for perpetrators of domestic abuse when services for victim/survivors are still inadequate, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Policing and artificial intelligence (AI) experts from the UK, Australia, US, Canada and the UAE came together recently to explore international insights into policing in the age of AI, highlighting the challenges around improving tech capability, overcoming fragmentation, the need to engage and explain to the public and police staff, and the dangers of eroding police discretion, as well as the increasing threats from the criminal use of AI, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

ANALYSIS: In the first in a series of articles on male officer mental health in policing, accredited psychological therapist Dr Rachel Rogers looks at what happens when emotional responses to extraordinary events and stresses become regarded as “normal”, and how the gap between the reality of policing and the systems designed to support it result in a culture where “resilience is expected but rarely resourced”, while help often arrives late and can feel disciplinary.

INNOVATION: Earlier this year Police Now launched a new specialist economic crime programme, recruiting 12 graduates to join City of London Police and become detectives within two years; Policing Insight’s James Sweetland spoke with City of London Deputy Commissioner Nik Adams, Police Now CEO Kurtis Christoforides, and three graduates on the programme to learn more.

ANALYSIS: Following the announcement earlier this month that the role of police and crime commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales will be abolished in 2028, Policing Insight’s Ian Wiggett looks at the background to the decision, reaction to it, and the challenges that will arise – from potential force boundary changes to the likelihood of increased politicisation of governance – which mean that the end of the PCC experiment is going to be much more than just an administrative change.