Operational policing

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Law enforcement is taking advantage of the capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs.) When combined with intelligence data in the knowledge graphs, the police can query the data using natural language and get accurate, reliable answers due to the nature of graph technology.

INTERVIEW: Merseyside Police’s two-pronged approach of piloting serious violence reduction orders and increasing high-profile uniformed foot patrols as part of a hotspot project has led to a drop in overall crime, and a 50% cut in violent crime in some areas; the force’s Supt Phil Mullally spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about how the two initiatives work together, the opportunities to improve community relations, and why “excellence in the basics” is better than “reinventing the wheel”.

OPINION: With the training schedule for the new Neighbourhood Policing Pathway (NPP) beginning next month, and first measures under the new Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee due to be in place across England and Wales in July, former South Wales Police detective Steve Dodd, a subject matter expert on intelligence professionalisation, looks at the opportunities and challenges for the NPP, and the role of community intelligence-led policing methodology within it.

FEATURE: A new report on county lines, policing and vulnerability, published by the Vulnerability and Policing Futures Research Centre, has highlighted the “postcode lottery” of UK policing approaches and outcomes in relation to viewing young people and vulnerable adults as victims of criminal exploitation, and called for more training, a new national policing strategy on exploitation, and a rethink over the use of the term ‘county lines’, as Policing Insight’s Keith Potter reports.

FEATURE: A review of public order policing in Ireland published by the Garda Síochána Policing Authority (now the Policing and Community Safety Authority) has highlighted a shortage of officers and training, outdated policies, the need for more support for the frontline from managers, and inconsistency and lack of understanding among senior operational ranks about the role of public order policing, as key concerns that need to be addressed, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: Following last month’s Royal Assent of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 – known as Martyn’s Law – Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the background to the new legislation and the key measures it will include, as well as highlighting the long delays in bringing the much-needed new powers into play.

FEATURE: New research exploring the impact of a police-sent, low-cost text message ‘nudge’ reminding Class A drugs offenders to attend a mandatory drug assessment has highlighted the increased chances of helping offenders to “make it through the door” towards treatment, improving compliance and potentially reducing recidivism and offending, reports Policing Insight’s Keith Potter.

OPINION: Victoria’s Supreme Court recently decided to keep Abdul Nacer Benbrika – Australia’s most notorious terrorist – under an extended supervision order, after police surveillance highlighted his continuing radical intent; but the lack of coverage of the case has prompted warnings from Dr John Coyne, Henry Campbell and Justin Bassi of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), who argue that such successes should help to reassure the public that Australia’s counter-terrorism policy is working well.

OPINION: Having spent more than 20 years advising and supporting police forces and stakeholders in the UK on how to bring meaningful change to police-community relations, Montell Neufville, Chair of the Joint Protective Services (Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire & Hertfordshire Police) Scrutiny Panel and a National Advisory Group member of the Independent Office for Police Conduct, shares his top tips on the steps police and crime commissioners and mayors can take to improve trust between forces and the communities they serve.

ANALYSIS: New research investigating healthcare provision inside police custody suites has highlighted long delays in people receiving vital treatments, with some denied their medication altogether – even when they have serious health conditions – as Newcastle University Senior Lecturer in Sociology Dr Gethin Rees explains.

INNOVATION: Following on from the Cityforum roundtable on transforming police public contact earlier this year, and with the Government’s policing priorities highlighting the issue as crucial to modern service delivery, Content Guru Co-Founder and Deputy CEO Martin Taylor looks at the strategic reform, innovation, and future of police public contact.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: The Institute of Criminology will host the annual Cambridge University Evidence-Based Policing Conference at the Cambridge Corn Exchange from July 21 to 22, 2025. This year’s conference promises to be the largest one yet, with at least 500 delegates in attendance and 20 top keynote speakers.

FEATURE: A new survey of more than 2,100 digital forensic examiners, investigators, analysts and agency managers from 97 countries highlights both the overwhelming levels of data involved in criminal investigations, and the “outdated methods” still in place across law enforcement which are creating “bottlenecks and barriers” to the greater use of artificial intelligence in tackling those investigations, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

ANALYSIS: The number of sextortion cases reported to the US National Centre for Missing & Exploited Children skyrocketed from 139 in 2021 to 26,000 in 2023, and the crime is now ruining young lives in countries around the world; Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons spoke to cybercrime analyst Paul Raffile and financial investigator Detective Brad Thorne about the scale of the problem, the importance of police investigating cases, and the need to overcome challenges around international co-operation.

FEATURE: Adopting and implementing a ‘carrot and stick’ approach to those likely to be drawn into organised crime groups (OCGs) – by coupling increased surveillance and police action with the opportunity for rehabilitation and pathways out of crime – can prevent young people from entering OCGs, reduce recidivism, disrupt gang activity, and increase arrests of established members, according to the results of a pilot scheme by West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

INNOVATION: With a wide range of potential applications for artificial intelligence (AI) in the law enforcement arena, Fernando Escudero, Tech Analyst at Spanish AI specialists ISID, takes a look at some of the most effective and beneficial current and potential police uses of the new technology.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: The World Police Summit 2025, supported by Policing Insight as media partner, is to take place in Dubai this May, bringing together thought leaders, law enforcement professionals, and global speakers from over 100 countries. Register your place today!

ANALYSIS: Recent arrests and seizures suggest drug traffickers are increasingly switching to chemically concealed cocaine (CCC) to move tonnes of shipments around the world, largely undetected; in the third in a series of articles on CCC and organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Dalby looks at growth of extraction labs across Europe and into the UK, the wealth of evidence, information and intelligence that the discovery of such labs can provide, and the vital role of forensic investigations.

FEATURE: A new report into the “effectiveness and efficiency” of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), published by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, warns that budgetary constraints have led to the lowest number of officers in the PSNI’s history, hampering the best efforts of the chief constable, his officers and staff to provide a high-quality service and build trust with communities, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: A report on police investigations into crime in England and Wales, published recently by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, warns that overstretched officers, increased time pressures and a lack of experience are inhibiting the ability of officers and staff to develop an “investigative mindset” and hampering the quality and effectiveness of investigations, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: The latest report on the MDMA drugs market, published by Europol and the European Union Drugs Agency, points to increased European production with significant health and environmental impacts, as well as EU criminal gangs reversing traditional cocaine routes to export MDMA to South America and Asia – in some cases bartering their product for other drugs – as Policing Insight’s Keith Potter reports.

ANALYSIS: A new report exposes the financial mechanisms that are enabling the online sexual exploitation and abuse of children on a global scale, as well as highlighting that financial institutions, tech companies and online payment platforms are also profiting from this “grotesque marketplace”, as Deborah Fry, Professor of International Child Protection Research at the University of Edinburgh and Global Director of Data for Childlight, the Global Child Safety Institute, explains.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Ten years after a landmark report called for decisive police action on domestic abuse, Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) has risen by 37%, reaching what authorities now label “epidemic levels” across England and Wales. While underreporting remains a significant challenge, new technologies and initiatives—like embedded domestic abuse specialists and Digital Evidence Management systems (DEMs) —are being deployed to improve police responsiveness and prosecution outcomes.

OPINION: Given the volume of missing persons enquiries undertaken by UK police every year, and the importance of such investigations to communities, any approaches which can help to resolve enquiries or prevent people from going missing should prove hugely beneficial; former South Wales Police detective Steve Dodd, a subject matter expert on intelligence professionalisation and advocate of the community intelligence-led policing methodology (CILPM), sets out why he believes more effective neighbourhood policing backed by CILPM could deliver significant improvements.