United Kingdom

Interview: Richard Walton, the former head of Scotland Yard's Counter-Terrorism Command, explains how the UK's CT strategy is working, but with ISIS facing defeat returning fighters and lone attackers will pose a greater threat. 

OPINION: How can football policing be made less confrontational and more family-friendly? Chief Superintendent Owen West of West Yorkshire Police reflects on the work of ‘Enable’ – a multi-stakeholder research partnership aiming to develop good practice in the safety and security challenges facing professional football in Sweden.

OPINION: Yesterday's report from the HMIC - The State of Policing in England and Wales - emphasised the lack of proper funding for mental health, and the way policing has been forced to become the service of first resort. Serving officer Nathan Constable - who has warned of this for some time - highlights the key issues around police responses to mental health crises.

Interview: Until two years ago, gun and knife crime in London had consistently fallen. Following a spike in the figures, the Met's new Commissioner Cressida Dick has pledged to make it her priority, but one charity believes the responsibility for tackling the problem goes beyond the force. Tina Orr-Munro speaks to Patrick Green of the Ben Kinsella Trust

ANALYSIS: The latest HMIC report, The State of Policing in England and Wales, was overshadowed by a row about the traumatic experiences suffered by uniformed officers. However, the report is an important one, addressing key issues around demand, resourcing and mental health. Carina O'Reilly, editor of Policing Insight, assesses the report.

Interview: As the end of their first year in office approaches, Policing Insight talks to Police and Crime Commissioners about their successes and challenges. In the first of a new series, Lincolnshire PCC Marc Jones reflects on the last 12 months in post.

Digital Policing Review: Vigilant Research’s first Digital Policing Review report launches on Thursday, and director Stephen Roberts argues that policing really can learn from the likes of Uber and Airbnb.

ANALYSIS: Project Nova started as a pilot model in the Norfolk and Suffolk areas, to identify military veterans at the earliest point in the criminal justice pathway, and support veterans at all stages through the criminal justice process. Dr Linda Cooper of Anglia Ruskin's Veterans and Families Unit reports back from the pilot.

ANALYSIS: Despite appearances (and headlines), the police service has been one of the public sector's success stories over the last few years, making significant cuts with less damage to services than other sectors. Emily Andrews of the Institute for Government examines the data through the IfG's new Performance Tracker - but warns there could be trouble ahead.

OPINION: Police cells are no place for people in mental health crisis, but new legal provisions due to come in will allow their detention in 'exceptional circumstances'. Serving officer Nathan Constable warns that people presenting as violent and unmanageable - the symptoms of 'excited delirium' - are the most likely to be detained, but also the most at risk from restraint.

OPINION: Direct entry is a controversial topic, and has generated a lot of debate. While few would argue that those who have joined through the scheme are dedicated and sincere, policing commentator Graham Wettone argues that nothing can replace direct experience of policing - especially at Inspector level.

NEWS BRIEF: The Home Office has announced a total of £1 million for nine Police and Crime Commissioners, to help them develop proposals to take on governance of fire and rescue.

OPINION: The Direct Entry debate has returned to the headlines in recent weeks with the suggestion that Chief Constables might in future be drawn from outside the service. Supt. Maggie Blyth, one of the first Direct Entry superintendents, says there's a huge amount of talent in policing - but there still might be advantages in looking outside.

OPINION: There has been a lot of recent debate about degree-level entry and the 'professionalisation' of policing. Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University has been heavily involved in work to recognise serving officers' existing skills and capacities. Here, she outlines what 'Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning' will mean.

OPINION: Policing research used to be dominated by research on the police, designed, directed and carried out by academic researchers. However, recent years have seen a move towards co-production of research with police. Sean Butcher, a PhD student at the University of Leeds, reports from a workshop on the challenges of co-production, and how this move might be sustained.

OPINION: There is an ongoing debate within policing about the value of academic input, and whether evidence-based policing can offer the kind of knowledge that policing needs. Chief Superintendent Owen West looks at the arguments, and calls for academic collaboration to confront the politics of knowledge within the police service itself.

Analysis: Dr Alistair Norman, lecturer in information management at Leeds University Business School, discussed the latest technological solutions around public safety communications at the recent B-APCO 2017 conference, including the drivers, barriers and trends for the future.

ANALYSIS: The policing landscape is undergoing tremendous change. Supt Dave Hill, Programme Director for the East Midlands Police Academic Collaboration (EMPAC) examines the 'VUCA' model - volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous - to help find a path for policing in the 21st century.

OPINION: Rural crime costs millions of pounds and can be devastating for victims – but is often overshadowed by urban demand. Cambridgeshire PCC Jason Ablewhite, who grew up on a farm, explains how the Rural Crime Action team - many of whom have farming backgrounds themselves - is building confidence in the police in rural communities.  

Interview: The company behind the TASER  X2 hopes its latest device will boost public reassurance and police accountability, but Matt Spencer, MD, Axon Public Safety, says changes to the latest model are just the beginning of a technological revolution in policing. 

OPINION: Degree level entry to the police is a hugely controversial issue for many serving officers, who feel that the proposals undermine them - but is this fair? Serving officer Dan Reynolds examines the Police Educational Qualifications Framework and what it offers for those already in the force.

OPINION: Direct Entry has been met with some hostility from police officers - but what is the problem it's meant to solve? Serving officer Gareth Stubbs looks at the insularity of the police service and what Direct Entry might offer to forces.

Analysis: Last month, North Yorkshire Police became the second police force in England and Wales to introduce misogyny as a separate hate crime category after Nottinghamshire Police introduced it last year, but how many other forces are likely to follow suit?

OPINION: At a time when police are facing significant organisational change, it's increasingly important that rank and file officers are engaged with this process. Emma Williams of Canterbury Christ Church University makes the case for listening more closely to officers - and backs @West_Response's call for the introduction of a front line impact assessment.