Diversity and inclusion

INTERVIEW: With a policing career spanning more than three decades, Deborah Friedl is now bringing all her experience to bear as President of the International Association of Women Police (IAWP); she spoke to Policing Insight’s Christine Townsend about the work of the IAWP, the challenges facing women in policing today, and why she would willingly do it all again.

OPINION: Neurodiverse young people and adults – particularly those with ADHD – may experience a number of traits that are likely to push them towards criminality; Met Police DC Daley Jones, co-chair of the ADHD Alliance, believes asking detainees to complete a simple, 18-step questionnaire could give them an indication that they might have a life-changing condition that can be helped with treatment and care, which may lead them away from offending.

FEATURE: Following the statement by Police Scotland Chief Constable Sir Iain Livingstone that the force is “institutionally racist and discriminatory”, a new report finds that the culture in Scotland’s single force is plagued by misogyny and sexism – with female staff paying the price, as Policing Insight’s James Sweetland reports.

INTERVIEW: Recognised by the International Association of Women Police as the longest serving female police officer in the world, Victoria Police Det Snr Sgt Joy Murphy this month received the Medal of the Order of Australia in the King’s Birthday Honours; now in her 51st year as a police officer, she spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about her passion for policing, her efforts to improve the service to victims, and her continuing advocacy for equal opportunities

FEATURE: With support from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, a women and policing network is encouraging and empowering female officers and staff in the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service; Policing Insight’s Christine Townsend spoke to DCO Nancy Barnard and Supt Wendy Parchment about efforts to increase female representation, and the Island’s unique culture, heritage and policing challenges which create opportunities for women officers.

OPINION: The continuing debate about institutional racism and policing remains under the spotlight following last month’s statement by Police Scotland Chief Constable Sir Iain Livingstone that the force is institutionally racist; but former Police Scotland Superintendent Martin Gallagher, now an Associate of the London Policing College, believes that the real problem lies with individuals rather than institutions – including a number of senior leaders.

FEATURE: The City of London Police has become the first UK force to automatically screen custody detainees for ADHD, in a bid to improve understanding and diagnosis as well as identifying the required support; Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons looks at the new initiative, and spoke to ADHD Alliance founder DC Daley Jones about the need for greater neurodivergence awareness across the criminal justice system.

ANALYSIS: The decision earlier this year by TVNZ to cancel Police Ten 7 – the channel’s longest running reality series – sparked claims of wokeness and cancel culture; but new research by Auckland University of Technology Associate Professor Antje Deckert, and Juan Marcellus Tauri, Adjunct Associate Professor at Macquarie University, found that the programme had over-represented Māori and Pasifika suspects in violent offences, and under-represented the proportion of Māori and Pasifika police officers.

FEATURE: Research exploring the policing of BAME communities in Scotland – part of a series of studies on ‘seldom-heard groups’ published by Police Scotland, the Scottish Institute for Policing Research and the Scottish Police Authority – has called for more value to be placed on community policing, a trauma-informed approach to improve understanding of people’s previous experience, and greater cultural awareness training, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: Although there can still be a stigma around the issues of disability and neurodiversity, for Met Police DC Daley Jones, co-chair of the ADHD Alliance, his diagnosis in his 30s with ADHD and Dyspraxia was a liberating moment; here he talks about his own experiences, and the opportunities and options available that can help achieve a ‘fair and level playing field’ for those with neurodiverse conditions and disabilities.

ANALYSIS: A series of recent reviews and reports have highlighted issues around misogyny and gender inequality in UK policing; in this article Dr Wendy Laverick, Professor Peter Joyce and Dr Emma Cunningham explore the context of some of those issues, and consider the advances as well as the continuing challenges in relation to gender equity in British policing.

ANALYSIS: While the Casey Review focused on the shortcomings of London’s Metropolitan Police, other forces around the UK have their own challenges in relation to equality, diversity and inclusion; Criminal Justice Lecturer Dr Ali Malik argues that Police Scotland, the UK’s second largest force after the Met, has plenty of work to do to address concerns around racism, misogyny and bullying within its ranks.

ANALYSIS: The authors of a new report – the first in a series of five on policing ‘seldom heard groups’ published by Police Scotland, the Scottish Institute for Policing Research and the Scottish Police Authority – have called for more to be done to overcome the challenges of policing people with multiple social identities and characteristics such as race, religion, sexuality and disability, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

LONG READ: Thirty years after the murder of Stephen Lawrence – and the subsequent Inquiry description of the Met Police as “institutionally racist” – the force, and UK policing more widely, is wrestling with many of the same issues; Policing Insight’s Ian Weinfass spoke to officers involved both then and now to find out what has changed over the past three decades, and what more needs to be done.

OPINION: The recently published Casey Review highlighted issues of a “toxic culture” in parts of the Metropolitan Police including racist, sexist and misogynistic behaviour; but doctoral researcher Kathryn Farrow of the University of Oxford argues that while the findings and headlines have focused on the Met, other forces around the country still have much work to do on many of the same issues.

OPINION: The findings of Baroness Casey’s review of the Met Police were difficult reading for many, and described a force in crisis; John Fox, Senior Lecturer in Police Studies at the University of Portsmouth, believes the situation calls for strong measures – including the polygraph testing of applicants, better support for whistleblowers, and creating a hostile environment for toxic behaviour – to drive essential cultural change.

ANALYSIS: In the third of a month-long series of articles celebrating International Women’s Day, Kendal Wright and Dr Keely Duddin of the Open University’s Policing Organisation and Practice Department share an insight into a ground-breaking study exploring women’s experiences of motherhood in the police.

ANALYSIS: Female police officers often find themselves the subject of online misogynistic and sexist abuse – both from current former colleagues, and members of the public – much of which focuses on their physical appearance; University of York Lecturer Dr Susan Watson believes that addressing these issues will be crucial if the service is to successfully recruit and retain a female workforce.

OPINION: This year’s International Women’s Day has a clear focus on driving gender equality through innovation and technology change; Dr Sarah Jane Fox of the University of Leicester explains that while considerable progress has been made on gender equality in policing, much more needs to be done both in law enforcement and in society more widely to keep women safe and provide the same access and opportunities as men.

FEATURE: In the first in a series of articles celebrating this month’s International Women’s Day, Dr Holly Taylor-Dunn and Dr Anna Hopkins of the Open University’s Policing Organisation and Practice Department explore both the current challenges for police and the wider criminal justice system, and the work being done by OU Policing, in support of women and the issues they face.

OPINION: RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki will retire later this month, after almost five years leading the service during a period of successive crises including the first unionization of its officers and a class-action lawsuit over allegations of bullying and harassment; but Dr Eli Sopow argues that changing the person at the helm of the service will do little to address the structural and cultural challenges it faces.

INTERVIEW: In the second of a two-part interview with Policing Insight, West Midlands Chief Superintendent Harvi Khatkar, Vice-President of the Police Superintendents' Association (PSA), spoke to Keith Potter about opportunities to change the narrative around policing, the need for clarity over policing’s role, and the pressures impacting on the wellbeing of superintendents.

INTERVIEW: West Midlands Chief Superintendent Harvi Khatkar was the first woman of colour to reach the superintending ranks in her force – and as Vice-President of the Police Superintendents' Association (PSA), she is the first to hold a national office in the PSA; in the first of a two-part interview with Policing Insight’s Keith Potter, she spoke about the concerns around misogyny and wider policing culture highlighted during her recent Home Affairs Committee appearance.

FEATURE: Continuing the latest series of The Police Student, Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly explores the issue of policing in popular culture – from the earliest historical depictions to the growth of police procedurals, contemporary representations and reality TV – and examines not only how those representations reflect the relationship between society and policing, but how they can shape it.