Police management

BOOK REVIEW: Crisis communication strategies are all about processes and systems, but communications expert Amanda Coleman argues in her new book - Crisis Communication Strategies: How to Prepare in Advance, Respond Effectively and Recover in Full - the key to the success of any strategy is how people are treated.

Analysis: In the fourth article of our series looking at police workforce numbers in England and Wales, Ian Wiggett examines the current police funding formula and how it increases disparity between forces, impacting decisions, including recruitment.

Opinion: Tom Nolan, Visiting Associate Professor of Sociology at Emmanuel College, Boston University, explores how the pandemic is affecting crime statistics in the United States and the impact it is having on the police response.

Innovation: In the second of a series of articles, Charlie Norman, managing director of road safety organisation DriveTech, argues that temporary changes to the way that motoring offenders are dealt with, brought about by the Coronavirus, are proving so successful that there’s a strong case for making them permanent.

INSIGHT: Two years ago, the Police Superintendents Association pioneered a coaching and mentoring scheme to help improve diversity in senior police ranks. Policing Insight reports on how the scheme is benefiting those that have taken part.

Analysis: USA: Covid-19 has presented law enforcement with huge challenges, but Dr. Joseph A. Cortez, Associate Professor at the University of Southern California and Lieutenant at the Santa Monica Police Department, argues it is also an unprecedented opportunity to switch off 'auto-pilot' and use the lessons learnt to help re-shape the future of policing.

Opinion: With some daily headlines in Britain focused on the use of police powers in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Professor Ian Loader from the University of Oxford considers the role of the police and how effective the current police response has been.

Analysis: Dr Alex Oaten from the University of Birmingham and Dr Chris Allen from the University of Leicester consider the principle of policing by consent and whether this has been lost in the policing reponse by some forces to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Analysis: Following the publication of CoPaCC's recent thematic on police contact management, Hootsuite's UK Police Lead Nathan Bird examines some of the findings and highlights the increasing role of online engagement, a low cost and, at times, more effective way to manage police demand.

OPINION: The culture of policing has undoubtedly evolved over the last decades, but what does the latest stage mean? Serving officer Martin Gallagher argues that the 'fourth age' of policing could see mobile working undermine the capacity of senior officers to lead on the frontline.

Analysis: Mixed teams of officers and staff are commonplace in UK policing, but civilian staff numbers have fallen significantly while police officer numbers are set to swell by an additional 20,000. In the third article of this series, Ian Wiggett examines the implications this shift towards more officers will have for policing.

INTERVIEW: As the rise of far-right extremism concerns senior counter-terrorism police officers, Dr Rakib Ehsan, terrorism expert from the Henry Jackson Society (HJS), explains to Policing Insight the motivations and propaganda that is fuelling recruitment to far-right groups, and how they are weaponising the COVID-19 crisis.

Opinion: As retired police officers are asked to consider returning to their force to help police the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, policing commentator Mark Brown discusses how the UK could develop a resilient and effective policing model able to cope in times of crisis.

Interview: Last month, amid concerns, the Government announced 4,000 low-risk prisoners would be released to tackle the spread of Covid-19. Policing Insight contributor Sarah Gibbons asks West Midlands Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner Waheed Saleem, who is leading a multi-agency, regional response, how will the scheme will work.

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: AUSTRALIA: Following the horrific deaths of four Victorian police officers, Dr. Kelly Hine, a lecturer in criminology at Australian National University, looks at how Australian officers are sustaining injuries and other medical conditions, and how often are officers dying in the line of duty.

OPINION: Former Chief Superintendent and author of the bestselling Blue: A Memoir - Keeping the Peace and Falling to Pieces John Sutherland considers the role police officers are playing in the face of the current pandemic and how all too often stories of their bravery and courage are overshadowed by tales of heavy-handed policing tactics.

OPINION: The UK police service is in the process of developing the Single Online Home, a national, digital counter service offering over forty policing services. But then the world changed. NPCC Lead for Digital Public Contact and Chief Constable of Leicestershire Simon Cole QPM reflects on the progress made and the impact of Covid-19.

Innovation: Scrutiny is a vital aspect of police governance, but how does it work during a pandemic? Last week, Cheshire Police and Crime Panel became the first to use Zoom to question Cheshire PCC David Keane on how the force is performing in these unprecedented times. But can a 'virtual meeting' be a substitute for the real thing?

SPOTLIGHT ON THE WINNERS: This police-led response to a terror attack on one of the UK’s oldest synagogues, which united a range of agencies and organisations to promote public reassurance and community cohesion, was awarded Highly Commended in the World Class Policing Awards, sponsored by Accenture. In the eleventh of twelve articles focusing on the award winning nominations, Keith Potter takes a closer look at this exceptional example of policing, partnership and community response.

Analysis: In the first of a series of articles on road safety, Drivetech Managing Director Charlie Norman examines the findings of the Government's recent view of Smart motorways following safety concerns and argues that re-educating motorists is crucial to reducing the number of deaths and injuries on the road.

Analysis: During austerity, some UK police forces lost over 50 per cent of their PCSOs and more than a quarter of their police staff employees. In the second article in our series on the nature of the UK's police workforce, we examine how the change in police staff and PCSO numbers over the past decade reflects a shift in attitudes towards civilianisation, outsourcing of staff and PCSOs.

ANALYSIS: Policing has responded well to rising 999 call volumes, but lack of research and understanding could hinder improvement in contact management says in his commentary summarising some highlights from the recent CoPaCC Police Contact Management: Demand Analysis Report.

Analysis: When US polling organisation Elucd asked Americans how satisfied they were with guidance received during the Coronavirus emergency, local police departments polled even worse than the President. Michael Simon, CEO of Elucd and former head of analysis to President Obama’s re-election campaign, tries to understand what lies behind this surprising result.