People development

FEATURE: Although there are early signs that COVID-19 is entering a more manageable stage which could ease the burden on frontline officers, new research suggests the long-term impact of the pandemic on the wellbeing and morale of police officers could far outlast the restrictions themselves, as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports.

POLICING FRIENDSHIP TOUR: Former Lancashire Chief Constable Andy Rhodes, now Service Director of Oscar Kilo, is “passionate” about providing support for officers and staff, and believes the new Police Covenant will improve welfare for those in policing from the moment they join the job until retirement and beyond, as he explained to Policing Insight Publisher Bernard Rix on a recent leg of the Policing Friendship Tour.

FREE SUBSCRIBER ACCESS: Policing Insight welcomes staff, students and researchers from the University of Manchester and the University of Worcester, who now have FREE access with the start of new organisation wide subscriptions. They join a community from many other UK and international institutions, police forces and other criminal justice organisations with an interest in progressive policing. Read on to find out how to use your FREE subscriber access.

FEATURE: Latest research on the wellbeing of frontline Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers found that more than three-quarters were experiencing high stress during the second round of the pandemic; but as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports, it was policing culture, the political atmosphere and the lack of resources – rather than the job itself – which were the most stressful factors, even during COVID-19.

OPINION: A recent College of Policing report on workplace adjustments enabling officers and staff with disability and neurodiversity issues to make the best possible contribution to policing has highlighted significant improvements over recent years; but as Detective Inspector Jamie Mills, Chair of Essex Police Disability and Carers network explains, the report also underlines that there is much more to be done – and chief officer commitment is crucial.

OPINION: The wide-ranging debate about responses to violence against women in Australia has included proposals for all women police stations; but researchers Dr Amanda Porter (University of Melbourne), journalist Ann Deslandes, Dr Crystal McKinnon (RMIT University) and Dr Marlene Longbottom (University of Wollongong) believe such a move is likely to be ineffective in addressing the real issues, particularly for females in Indigenous communities.

FEATURE: Continuing a new series of The Police Student, Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly takes a closer look at the key debates concerning police culture and identity, and explores issues around police legitimacy, the problems of machismo and racial prejudice, whether officers are born or made, and the crucial role current students have to play in the evolution of modern policing culture.

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE: Policing Insight has a wide range of fantastic resources to support your degree study – and many students will already have free subscriber access via their academic institution or police force subscription.

FEATURE: If you’re embarking on one of the latest police training routes – whether it's a policing degree, a degree apprenticeship or a postgraduate qualification – you will be among the first cohorts to study a degree course specifically designed to prepare you for the challenges of the job; Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly explains how the courses differ, and offers tips on the best sources and resources to help you get the most from your studies.

POLICE SUPERS CONFERENCE 2021: With mental health referrals increasing across the police service post-Covid, the need for a system that fully supports officers and staff mental wellbeing has never been more urgent. Policing Insight Contributing Editor Tina Orr Munro reports from the Police Superintendents’ Association Conference on the impact of Covid, and what forces can do to improve their employees’ mental health.

ANALYSIS: Recent upward trends in the size of the police workforce are welcome, but bring potential issues to be addressed down the line; in the latest in his series examining workforce changes, Ian Wiggett flags up how new training needs will emerge, why development opportunities are unlikely to keep pace with demand and ambitions – and that it really is true, officers are, indeed, getting younger.

Insight: Multiple and conflicting factors shaped the ways police officers thought about their work during the height of the COVID-19 crisis. UK researchers concluded that organisational climate was at the heart of these processes and officers may be more likely to maintain appropriate standards of policing and feel less stress if they are well supported by employers. Dr Arabella Kyprianides reports on the research conducted with Professor Ben Bradford, Professor Clifford Stott and Dr Leanne Savigar-Shaw.

Police Supers Conference 2021: Whilst the number of Black, Minority and Ethnic officers joining the police service is improving, the number in senior positions remains low at 4.3 per cent. This year’s Police Superintendents' Association Conference explored how representation in the senior ranks could be improved and how things might be about to change. Tina Orr Munro reports.

Interview: Transferring into An Garda Síochána from Toronto Police, Deputy Commissioner Shawna Coxon wondered how she would be received as 'an outsider' implementing their reform programme. She needn't have worried. Here she tells Policing Insight's Deputy Editor Sarah Gibbons about the warm welcome she's received, her frustrations at COVID restrictions limiting her walks on the beat and how the culturally rich policing style has her smitten.

OPINION: Amid the furore to call a halt to Dame Cressida Dick's time at the helm of the Metropolitan Police, the Government and - crucially - the rank and file respect and support her leadership style and believe she remains the right person for the job with no obvious successor yet identified. Former BBC Home Affairs correspondent Danny Shaw examines some of the reasons why the Commissioner's contract has, indeed, been extended.

ANALYSIS: Recent media headlines suggesting young recruits may not be ready for the challenges of modern UK policing have also prompted questions over the average age of those joining the service; now new research by University of Sunderland Lecturer Adrian Smiles and Police Federation of England and Wales Professional Development Lead David Bamber has confirmed that new recruits have generally got younger over the past three years – and forces need to be aware of the issues that may raise.

JOB ADVERTISEMENT: Police Lecturer vacancies at Babcock International for their new flagship contract partnering with several Higher Education Institutes across London to deliver the new Metropolitan Police Service Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) framework.

FEATURE: A recent Independent Office for Police Conduct report made a raft of recommendations based on a review of 101 cases of the police use of Taser over a five-year period; but the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the Police Federation have both criticised the report for being ‘vague’, ‘statistically insignificant’ and failing to engage with policing, as Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter reports.

ANALYSIS: The UK Government’s ‘Uplift’ initiative to recruit an additional 20,000 police officers in England and Wales is well underway, but the challenge of balancing new recruits with those leaving posts means not all forces are expanding at the same rate; in the latest in a series of articles on the police workforce, Policing Insight’s Ian Wiggett looks at the key issues of service leavers and joiners, the pandemic effect and the need for more accurate data.

POLICING FRIENDSHIP TOUR: Avon and Somerset PCC Mark Shelford is leading the force’s hunt to find a new chief constable following the departure of Andy Marsh; but while traditionally the top job has been filled by existing chiefs or deputies, the force is widening the recruitment pool to include assistant chief constables and overseas applicants who possess the right leadership and Peelian qualities, as Mr Shelford explained to Policing Insight Publisher Bernard Rix on a recent leg of the Policing Friendship Tour.

FEATURE: The return of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and their apparent attempts to use social media and other avenues to hunt down those who have collaborated with coalition forces, has highlighted once again the dangers and security concerns around the online presence of police officers; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth examines some of the main risks, as well as steps police and others can take to protect themselves and others from harm.

OPINION: Operations by police and security teams to clear homeless encampments around the city of Toronto have been defended as an attempt to ensure the safety of occupants and the general public; however, Professor Joe Hermer of the University of Toronto argues that not only is this untrue, but it also represents a betrayal by police and the mayor, who had previously pledged to listen to and build a relationship with the city’s most marginalised and vulnerable people.

OPINION: The Home Office recently put out a revised draft of the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice for public consultation in the UK; Tony Porter, the former Surveillance Camera Commissioner and now Chief Privacy Officer at Corsight AI, believes there is a need for more guidance and clearer governance of surveillance cameras and facial recognition technology, and that regulation of their use and deployment should be a role for the Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office.

ANALYSIS: With the world watching, the US, UK and allies involved in nation-building efforts in Afghanistan completed a hasty and messy withdrawal as the Taliban returned to power; Policing Insight contributor Gareth Bryon looks at the lessons to be learned from failed attempts to create a community-based Afghan civil police force focused on crime and disorder, and whether there is any hope for the recent genuine reform introduced by President Ashraf Ghani.