28th January 2020
Opinion: Policing has been accused of being the last unreformed public service. But, as President of the Police Superintendents Association Paul Griffiths reflects on his last ten years with the Association, he says change has been considerable and much has been achieved.
Analysis: This May, in England and Wales, the public will go to the polls to elect their local Police and Crime Commissioner. Professor Peter Joyce and Dr Wendy Laverick examine the lessons to be learnt from the previous two elections in 2012 and 2016 and what prospective candidates are likely to focus on in 2020.
Analysis: Last week's police funding settlement - the biggest increase in police funding for a decade - has been welcomed by many in the service. While the headline figures are impressive, former Assistant Chief Constable and now CoPaCC Director Ian Wiggett takes a closer look and finds some questions still need to be answered.
Opinion: With police forces across the UK now faced with the task of recruiting an additional 20,000 officers, Policing Insight Contributor Andrew Staniforth says the service should seize the opportunity to recruit more creative thinkers for the benefit of policing.
21st January 2020
INSIGHT: This week’s Police ICT Summit will see suppliers, police buyers and stakeholders discuss current challenges and develop solutions. But where are the voices of the end users in this process? And could a greater focus on user experience help to solve existing challenges as well as develop more effective long-term solutions?
Analysis: The grooming of children is on the rise across England and Wales. Policing Insight Contributor Andrew Staniforth discusses this disturbing trend and considers how artificial intelligence is leading the fight against online grooming.
Analysis: Professor Peter Joyce and Dr Wendy Laverick explore how hate crime has evolved since the Second World War, the impact of the more recent rise of far right extremism and the challenges facing policing in the current political climate.
20th November 2019
Analysis: New research on peoples' experiences of policing at anti-fracking protests has pointed to an increasing criminalisation of non-violent protest. One of the researchers, Dr Will Jackson, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Liverpool John Moores University, explores the police's approach to protesters and the implications it has for police legitimacy.
OPINION: How sex and gender identity should be defined in law and policy has become one of the most controversial of contemporary debates. The role of the police is in turn a topic of considerable contention. Dr Kath Murray, a Research Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, warns that police forces must acknowledge both perspectives in the debate for the sake of their own legitimacy.
Analysis: The Police Innovation Fund was introduced in 2013 and replaced by the Police Transformation Fund in 2016, but how successful has it been in bringing the latest innovation and technology to police forces? Policing Insight contributor Andrew Staniforth argues the time is now right for a full evaluation.
NEWS: To coincide with World Mental Health Day (10 Oct), the Police Superintendents' Association has published details of their latest resilience survey which reveals a worrying long-hours culture, rising workloads and high levels of stress and anxiety.
1st October 2019
FEATURE: Each week, in the lead up to the inaugural World Class Policing Awards sponsored by Accenture in November, Policing Insight will be publishing details of the 54 finalists. This week, the outstanding nominations include a police cadet scheme for adults with learning difficulties, a new mobile fingerprint reader, a drink awareness project in Australia and many more.
OPINION: The number of rapes reported has soared but convictions are at an all-time low. Ian Wiggett highlights the challenges of a Crown Prosecution Service under pressure, growing demands of disclosure in a digital world and police forces struggling with demand and a shortage of resources.
24th September 2019
World Class Policing Awards: From missing people to reducing offending to fulfilling potential in the work place and fast-tracking detectives – Policing Insight is delighted to publish a series of six weekly articles highlighting the 54 finalists for the inaugural World Class Policing Awards. We present the first nine in alphabetical order.
10th September 2019
Announcement: Following rigorous judging of over 100 UK and overseas entries to the inaugural World Class Policing Awards, the shortlist of nominations has now been finalised! See if your force has made the final cut.
NEWS: Live Blog: This year's Police Superintendents' Association Conference takes place in Stratford upon Avon. It's day two of the conference which will feature HMCIC Sir Tom Winsor on the state of policing, followed by the launch of the most comprehensive and independent review of policing for years by the Police Foundation.
NEWS: Live Blog: This year's Police Superintendents' Association Conference takes place in Stratford upon Avon. We'll be live-blogging the event in which the Home Secretary Priti Patel is expected to make her first major public address to the police service.
NEWS: All forces in England and Wales have received national guidance on the menopause after 44% of female officers surveyed revealed they considered quitting because of their symptoms. The move follows considerable efforts by many including the Menopause Doctor Dr Louise Newson who highlighted the importance of this issue for the service in her March 2018 interview with Policing Insight.
ANALYSIS: The latest in our Report Watch series summarises the findings of a joint inspection by HMICFRS and HMICS into the arrangements surrounding how chief officers are selected and developed.
Opinion: Police recruitment methods have failed to deliver on diversity. With 20,000 new police officers about to join the service, Chartered Psychologist Dr Pete Jones, who specialises in implicit bias around recruitment selection and assessment, warns the service not to squander this 'once in a generation' opportunity to get it right.
8th August 2019
INSIGHT: In July, Policing Insight broke the story that Lincolnshire Chief Constable Bill Skelly had begun judicial review proceedings against the College of Policing’s degree entry scheme for new police officers. As the scheme has taken shape, Policing Insight has published many articles from different stakeholders on the proposals. Here is a selection of those articles.
Book Review: Over 600 superintendents have benefited from workshops delivered by Jonathan Rees to equip them with the skills to survive and thrive in complex and extensive command environments. Jonathan has now taken his knowledge and expertise and distilled it into 'The Resilience Toolkit - Powerful ways to thrive in blue-light services' to help others succeed.
analysis: Leaveism - the practice of always being 'on the job' including checking emails 24/7 - is a growing habit for many. Senior Responsible Owner for the National Police Wellbeing Service Dr Ian Hesketh examines the effects of leaveism and the innovative approaches some companies have adopted to tackle it.
