Training/learning/development

FEATURE: In the latest in the new series of The Police Student focusing on Criminology in Policing, Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly explores critical perspectives on crime, including Marxist approaches to criminology, white collar crimes and corruption, and critical race theory.

INTERVIEW: In the second part of his interview with Policing Insight, Det Supt Ian Kirby, the recently appointed CEO of the National Cyber Resilience Centre Group, spoke to James Sweetland about the benefits of the Cyber PATH programme, and the importance of all officers having enough understanding of cybercrime to be able to offer basic advice and support to victims.

FEATURE: A new joint report by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, and HM Inspectorate of Probation into victims’ services has found that despite agencies recognising the need to improve services for victims, poor communications and a focus on meeting the Victims’ Code meant that the findings highlighted ‘depressingly familiar’ shortcomings, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

LONG READ: Having explored the challenges and opportunities faced by policing in collating and analysing the huge growth in data sources – including the potential for technology to offer solutions, the skillsets required and the ethical concerns – what does law enforcement need to do to tackle these issues? In the last in the series of five features, Policing Insight’s Keith Potter spoke to police practitioners, stakeholders and specialists about the way forward.

FEATURE: As we welcome in 2024, Policing Insight Editor Keith Potter looks back over what the past 12 months have meant for policing in the UK and internationally, how those issues have been covered by Policing Insight, and the continuing challenges and opportunities for the year ahead.

INTERVIEW: With cyber threats on the rise, Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth spoke to Professor Stuart Macdonald, Director of the Cyber Threats Research Centre (CYTREC), about the current threat landscape, the cyber challenges for 2024, and how new regulations are combatting online terrorist propaganda.

INTERVIEW: The continuously rotating shift patterns worked by many officers and staff within policing can have a significant negative impact on both dietary habits as well as wider health and wellbeing; nutritional therapist Anna Earl, who works with UK police wellbeing service Oscar Kilo, believes there’s much more that both forces and officers can do to address the challenges, as she explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

FEATURE: This year’s Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA) Conference attracted almost 600 delegates and more than 70 speakers from 17 countries, with a focus on exploring partnerships and collaborative working; ANZPAA CEO Dr Tracey Green reflects on the learning and outcomes from the two-day event, and how these can help to shape and improve policing moving forwards.

OPINION: The Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October, and Israel’s subsequent ground invasion of Gaza, has led to significant rise in hate crime attacks on both Jews and pro-Palestinians in the US; but Professor Jeannine Bell of Chicago’s Loyola University believes complex legislation, inadequate police training and a lack of specialists officers and prosecutors means that hate crimes are rarely reported, well investigated, charged or brought to trial.

OPINION: The decision to implement a third, non-degree entry route into UK policing may already have been made, but University of Central Lancashire Policing Lecturer David Marshall believes the move to bypass the current degree entry routes will negatively impact on efforts to professionalise policing, create a two-tier service, and do little to address falling levels of trusts and confidence in the police.

FEATURE: Former Sussex Detective Chief Inspector Alison Eaton, now an international sexual and gender-based violence expert and trainer, is playing a key role in setting up SARC-style services for refugee and local community victims in Jordan, in a project which could become international best practice, as she explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

LONG READ: Having previously considered some of the wider issues around policing’s approach to the exponential growth in volume and complexity of data sources for investigations and intelligence gathering, in this latest in a series of features on the police data challenge, Policing Insight’s Keith Potter looks at the concerns around staffing – from skills gaps and accreditation to leadership literacy and implementation.

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Dr Chris Allen spoke to Dr Jordan Nunan, former police officer, Senior Lecturer in Criminal at the University of Northampton, and National Co-ordinator for the National Police Chief’s Council’s Intelligence Practice Research Consortium, about the value of police-academic partnerships, the Achilles heel tactic, and the crucial role of human intelligence sources in tackling organised crime.

INTERVIEW: A cold case review team led by Leeds Trinity University’s Dr Kirsty Bennett is calling on forces to be more open to sharing information and working in collaboration to meet the increasing demand from grieving families looking for justice for their lost loved ones, as she explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

ANALYSIS: The consequences of labelling – both for citizens and for police – can be significant, particularly in relation to officers’ own perception of their role as guardians or a ‘warrior mindset’; Matthew Wood, a police constable with Toronto Police Service and part-time professor at the Seneca College School of Public Safety, explores these issues in relation to the ‘grey zone’ of law enforcement, the importance of police discretion, and what steps can be taken to improve policing outcomes.

INTERVIEW: Despite widely acknowledged challenges facing policing in the UK, and the ongoing debate around entry routes into the profession, a career keeping communities safe from crime, disorder and terrorism remains an attractive proposition for many young people; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth spoke to final-year Professional Policing undergraduate Megan Collins-Dale about her choice of degree qualification, and how a recent internship in the US has helped her prepare for a future in policing and criminal justice in the UK.

OPINION: South Africa is facing continued growth in violent crime, and reconfigured policing strategies designed to tackle the problem seem to have had little success; Stellenbosch University’s Dr Guy Lamb argues that a more collaborative approach from police working with local communities, and the proper funding and implementation of the country’s Integrated Crime and Violence Prevention Strategy, would be the most effective way forward.

FEATURE: The importance of forensics in police investigations cannot be overstated, and their increasingly crucial role has been one of the driving forces behind the recent launch of the Forensic Science Regulator’s Code of Practice; the role of forensics, and the understanding and implications of the new Code, were the key topics for discussion in a recent @WeCops online chat, hosted by Thames Valley Police Head of Forensics Kay Hannam, and Head of Forensic Accreditation, Caroline Rust.

FEATURE: A new report by a cross-party committee of UK MPs has described the need for policing to “repair its culture” in the face of increasingly complex demands and failures that have damaged confidence in the service as a “turning point for the police”, amid warnings that “marginal changes” will not be enough to improve services and rebuild public trust, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: In the latest in a new series of The Police Student focusing on Criminology in Policing, Policing Insight Academic Editor Dr Carina O’Reilly looks at labelling theory – who decides what a deviant act is, how individuals are defined as deviants or criminals, and what the consequences of that can be for the individuals themselves, as well as for the police.

INTERVIEW: In 2020, as Leicestershire Police prepared to greatly increase its officer numbers as part of the Uplift recruitment programme, leaders within the force set about trying to change attitudes, consideration of and delivery of training through the creation of the Team Leicestershire Academy; Policing Insight’s Ian Weinfass spoke to its head Sarah Taylor, and Chief Constable Rob Nixon, about the force’s new methods.

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.

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INTERVIEW: As with many other police forces, Queensland Police Service (QPS) is looking to improve the representation of female officers across the workforce; new research from QPS Detective Chief Inspector Mike Newman suggests that instilling more confidence in female officers, and addressing inherent biases in selection processes, will be crucial in ensuring female officers progress through the ranks at the same rate as their male counterparts, as he explained to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.