Emergency Services Network (ESN)

ANALYSIS: With police forces in England and Wales already voicing fears over funding for the coming financial year, the autumn budget statement and additional £1 billion for policing announced just before Christmas eased some concerns, but still highlighted significant differences in financial resources; Policing Insight’s Ian Wiggett looks at what the budget and announcement means for forces, why some will benefit while others struggle, the vagaries of the police funding formula, and the challenges ahead.

OPINION: UK policing faces a continuing struggle to leverage the maximum effectiveness and efficiency out of the use of new technology, while accommodating concerns around ethics and human rights; Darren Scates, the Met Police Chief Digital Data and Technology Officer, looks at some of the particular challenges around the practical implementation and delivery of innovative technologies, and suggests steps the service could take to improve outcomes.

INTERVIEW: As she takes the helm of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) –  the representative group for UK police governance – Donna Jones speaks to Policing Insight’s Ian Weinfass about the changes that are coming for PCCs and the wider law enforcement picture.

ANALYSIS: As UK emergency services look to learn lessons from the Manchester Arena Inquiry to improve crisis response, a new European project involving partners from eight countries is using data sets from previous emergencies and disasters to identify strategies that can strengthen disaster resilience at a local, national and international level, as Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth reports.

FEATURE: The process of replacing the UK’s increasingly outdated Airwave communications network with a new Emergency Services Network (ESN) has been plagued by overruns and soaring additional costs; now the Competition and Markets Authority has launched an investigation into the Motorola-owned Airwave, amid concerns that the company is cashing in on the delays, as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports.

POLICING FRIENDSHIP TOUR: Sopra Steria’s Public Safety MD Paul Bergin believes policing already has the technology to predict future crimes and identify future criminals; the bigger question is how that tech and data is used ethically, as he explained to Policing Insight Publisher Bernard Rix on a recent leg of the Policing Friendship Walking Tour.

INNOVATION: As delegates gather in Coventry for this week’s BAPCO public safety technology event, Simon Hall, CEO of police digital mobility platform PoliceBox, looks back at the predictions he was invited to make regarding police IT in 2006 – and the success stories, disappearing initiatives and surprise arrivals on the policing technology scene over the intervening 15 years.

Feature: As the Inquiry into the 2017 Manchester Arena terror attack continues, there is work behind the scenes to update the Joint Doctrine, the interoperability framework for UK emergency service responders; Carl Daniels of JESIP spoke to Policing Insight’s Catherine Levin about the consultation and how it has never been more important to work together.

INTERVIEW: In January, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) published its COVID-19 inspection of fire and rescue services across England and Wales. Catherine Levin talks to two police, fire and crime commissioners to see whether having oversight of both police and fire makes a difference when it comes to responding to a global pandemic.

OPINION: The coronavirus pandemic has put significant pressures on policing, which in turn have been significant catalyst for change. In this recently published white paper, former Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Craig Mackey explores how UK policing can use the current appetite for radical change coupled with technological advances to improve performance.

INTERVIEW: Peter Prater, Chair of the International Critical Control Rooms Alliance (ICCRA), chaired the inaugural global Control Room Summit in Amsterdam earlier this year. In this interview for Policing Insight, he discusses the changes he has seen in 35 years in control rooms, the potential to learn from other sectors, and the technologies he thinks will shape the future.

OPINION: The Emergency Services Network (ESN), the replacement for the UK police radio communications system, has been beset by delays and rising costs. Evan Morris MBE, vice chair of the National Association of Police, Fire and Crime Panels (NAPFCP) and chair of Cheshire Police and Crime Panel, calls on crime panels to challenge their Police and Crime Commissioners over the impact this has had on budgets.

OPINION: New technology is set to transform blue light services. Sarah Timmis of the thinktank Reform introduces a new report on the benefits of the new technology - and the changes to data sharing that this transformation will entail.

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.

Exclusive: The Minister for Policing and the Fire Service, responds to a recent article in Policing Insight critical of the Emergency Services Network. Brandon Lewis MP explains why the government is working to move from the TETRA radio communications system, known as Airwave, currently in use by the police, ambulance and fire and rescue service, to a national integrated network using 4G Long Term Evolution mobile technology

Interview: Tina Orr-Munro talks to former chief constable of British Transport Police, Andy Trotter who as police lead for communications, was closely involved with the implementation of Airwave

Opinion: For a number of years now, a growing number of critical communications experts from UK and around the world have been watching with horror as the UK Government, led by HM Treasury, Cabinet Office and Home Office, has attempted to deliver a next-generation communications network for public safety and emergency services personnel.

ANALYSIS: In October, Lord Toby Harris published his review of London’s preparedness for terrorist attacks, commissioned by the Mayor of London. Former Greater Manchester ACC Ian Wiggett examines the report's implications for the country, not just the capital.

NEWS: A unique conference in Munich later this month - with attendance free - showcases research on social media and community policing across Europe for the first time. Lindsey Gunby of West Yorkshire for Innovation, the organisers of the conference, talks about the projects and their potential for technology to help transform community policing.