Neighbourhood/community policing

OPINION: Approaches and initiatives that improve police engagement with communities are acknowledged by many in policing as delivering real and long-term benefits, but when it comes to resourcing, are often regarded as ‘nice to haves’ rather than necessary; however, University of Portsmouth Policing Lecturer David Knowles – a specialist in engagement during his 30-year policing career – argues that such engagement is essential in building trust and confidence as well as tackling all levels of crime.

ANALYSIS: Over recent weeks all the UK’s main political parties have held their annual conferences – potentially the last major party gatherings that will be held before general election as well as police and crime commissioner elections in 2024; Policing Insight’s Thomas James looks back at the key speeches from the events to highlight the police and crime discussions taking place, and the calls and commitments shared with delegates around law and order.

INTERVIEW: As the Chief of Winnipeg Police Service and President of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, Danny Smyth understands more than most about the challenges facing policing and police leadership in Canada and beyond; and as he explained to Policing Insight’s Christine Townsend, building community relationships, ensuring the wellbeing of officers, and preparing the next generation of leaders will all be vital to meeting those challenges.

OPINION: The recent killing of London schoolgirl Elianne Andam, who died after being stabbed on a Croydon street while on her way to school, has once again prompted lengthy debate around knife crime; former police officer Oliver Laurence, who grew up in Croydon, shares his thoughts on what can be done to tackle the crisis – including listening to the views of those with first-hand experience of knife crime in their community, such as AJ Wright.

ANALYSIS: Deploying ‘mixed’ squads consisting of police officers and healthcare or social workers is an approach that has been used in responding to the homeless and those in mental health crises in a number of countries; but new Canadian research by Concordia University Professor Ted Rutland and Karl Beaulieu, Université du Québec à Montréal PhD researcher, suggest that in the case of ‘unhoused people’, far from improving the situation it’s an approach that is creating more harm.

INTERVIEW: In the third part of our extended interview with Professor Lawrence Sherman, Policing Insight’s James Sweetland spoke with the Met’s Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) about the controversial topic of stop and search and the force’s new ‘precision’ approach to tackling violent crime on the streets of London.

OPINION: The recent directive from UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman calling for a review of police officers’ political activism is the latest salvo in a much wider conversation about so-called ‘woke’ policing; Policing Insight’s Graham Wettone, a former long-serving police officer, looks at the origins of the term ‘woke’, its relevance to policing, and how the service has been affected by increased politicisation.

OPINION: In September 2022, Sir Mark Rowley came back into policing after some time away from the job at the end of a 30-year career, to take up one of the UK’s toughest roles as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police; Policing Insight’s Graham Wettone, who served in the Met Police for 30 years, looks back over Sir Mark’s first year in post, and delivers an annual appraisal of how well the Commissioner has performed against his stated objectives.

ANALYSIS: With the criminal justice system in England and Wales facing court backlogs, growing prison populations and a range of other pressures, Transform Justice’s latest report Close to Home sets out how localising many criminal justice services could reduce waste, cut crime, increase public confidence and improve the experiences of victims, as Research and Policy Lead Fionnuala Ratcliffe explains.

FEATURE: A crime prevention approach implemented by Essex Police used spatial analytics to focus on ‘places not people’ and incorporated hotspot policing to reduce offending by 40%; with the initiative now viewed as ‘business as usual’ within the force, the Home Office has directed other forces to ensure surge funding to tackle violence is focused on a similar hotspot approach, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

ANALYSIS: UK police leaders and inspectorates have frequently highlighted the importance of neighbourhood policing, and community engagement is a crucial element to that approach; University of Northampton Associate Professor Dr Tim Curtis, Executive Director of Intensive Engagement, discusses his latest research which surveyed the neighbourhood policing skills of 150 police officers and PCSOs, and how effectively those skills are applied to a real-world policing scenario.

FEATURE: The latest New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey shows that while public perceptions of policing overall remain strongly positive, high-profile controversies and ‘gross failings’ in police behaviour in other countries – coupled with a fall in support for the ‘public sector brand generally’ – has prompted a dip in public trust and confidence in NZ Police, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: Footage of the recent arrest of a mother in front of her young son for suspected fare evasion has once again ignited a debate about appropriate policing responses; Dr Meron Wondemaghen, a Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Hull, believes this and other cases have highlighted the issues of what constitutes social harm, what is a proportionate response, and why a ‘do no harm’ principle should precede any law and order aims.

OPINION: Recruitment and retention continue to be challenging for policing in the UK and internationally, including for London’s Metropolitan Police Service; Vernon White, former Chief of Police for Ottawa Police Service, and Joe Carlebach, former Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health at Hammersmith and Fulham Council, argue that addressing low morale is essential to overcome those challenges – both for the performance of the force, and for the communities that it polices.

OPINION: In a follow-up to an earlier 2019 study highlighting disproportionate police stops of Black, Indigenous and Arab people in Montreal, a report published in June suggests a new non-discriminatory policy has had little impact; Concordia University Associate Professor Ted Rutland believes the city is abdicating its role of overseeing the police on behalf of the population.

ANALYSIS: Research from University of Warwick’s Centre for Operational Police Research (COPR) assesses the benefits and challenges of arts and culture as a means of better police engagement and relationship-building with seldom-heard communities who historically, have had little reason to trust the police, as Dr Rachel Lewis and Professor Jacqueline Hodgson explain.

FEATURE: Community policing is widely recognised to be the backbone of British policing, with community engagement, interactive partnerships and a targeted visible presence all crucial to the success of the model; now EU funding is being made available to forces looking to develop new methods and technologies in the service of community policing and transferable best practices, as Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth reports.

FEATURE: In his first State of Policing assessment report as HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Andy Cooke has warned that public trust and confidence in policing is “hanging by a thread”, with the service having a “limited window of opportunity” in which to act; he also called for change to start from the top, and for more powers for the Inspectorate to be able to direct forces to rectify problems, as Policing Insight’s Keith Potter reports.

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.

FEATURE: The Casey Review highlighted issues of “institutional racism, misogyny and homophobia” in the Met, and sent a message to the service more widely about the need to address these and other issues; at a recent Birmingham City University online panel, current and former police officers joined academics to discuss the implications of the Review, with several emphasising the need to focus on the challenges rather than the terminology, as Keith Potter reports.

FEATURE: A photographic approach to enabling young people to talk about their community – part of a series of studies on policing ‘seldom-heard groups’ published by Police Scotland, the Scottish Institute for Policing Research and the Scottish Police Authority – has offered a fresh perspective and greater insight into one of Scotland’s more deprived communities, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: A report into the policing of care-experienced and LGBTQI+ young people in Scotland – part of a series of studies on policing ‘seldom-heard groups’ published by Police Scotland, the Scottish Institute for Policing Research and the Scottish Police Authority – has recommended changes to police training, declaring being care experienced as a ‘protected characteristic’, and adopting a ‘policing with empathy’ approach, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: The authors of a new report – the second 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 highlighted greater visibility and engagement, better cultural awareness and more funding among the key steps to building better relationships between Police Scotland and refugee and asylum seeker communities, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

INTERVIEW: With Warwickshire Police enjoying record officer numbers following the recent Uplift recruitment programme, and a strategic alliance with neighbouring West Mercia ending, the force took the decision to remodel its workforce and operations; Deputy Chief Constable Alex Franklin-Smith spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the aims for performance improvements, and how the changes could future-proof the service to the public.