Diversity and inclusion

OPINION: Debates around ‘warrior cop’ masculinity and excessive use of force in policing have continued in the wake of the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter protests; but suggestions that simply hiring more women will change police culture are flawed, says Harvard Masters candidate Diane Liang.

OPINION: In December the UK Government confirmed that it was scrapping standalone unconscious bias training for civil servants, citing a report that suggested it was ineffective, and could even be counter-productive; but Police Ethics Advisor Montell Neufville believes such training – particularly when delivered as part of wider learning on diversity, cultural competency or risk management – still has an important role to play in policing.

OPINION: In the latest in his series of bi-monthly blogs, Superintendent Simon Nelson, President of the Disabled Police Association, looks at UK Disability History Month, how far policing has come in relation to diversability and neurodiversity, and what more still needs to be done.

FEATURE: Diversity, equality and inclusion in police recruitment was the key focus for the first @WeCops Twitter chat in November, and with a reach of almost three million – and with contributions from all ranks as well as the Policing Minister – it’s clearly a crucial current topic for policing. @WeCops Supt Katy Barrow-Grint brought together to the main points from the debate in this blog.

Analysis: A decade of falling police officer numbers in England and Wales has been a continuous focus of concern. In a new series of articles Ian Wiggett analyses where the cuts have been felt the deepest and the implications for the workforce mix. This first article looks at how police officer numbers and the total size of the workforce have changed for each force since 2010 and what the picture is likely to look like in 2023.