Citizen involvement in policing - a critical but under-researched aspect of policing

The forms that direct citizen involvement in policing take vary widely across different national contexts. What is more consistent internationally is the relative neglect the different formations of direct involvement in policing have experienced from policymakers, politicians, professionals and academics. Police volunteers play a significant part in policing in many communities, across many countries. In a large number of national settings, including England and Wales, Scotland, USA, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, Australia and the Netherlands a new significance is being attached to police volunteers and to wider elements of public participation in policing. There are social policy drivers in these national settings which are underpinning substantial increases in the scale of voluntarism and in the roles that volunteers perform. Increasingly, this expansion in voluntarism internationally is playing a significant part in police reform. In contrast, many other country’s policing systems do not have any direct mechanisms for police volunteering. Beyond police volunteering, there are also wide variations in the forms that public involvement takes across police accountability, crime prevention and problem-solving, police-youth engagement and community consultation. The paper will draw from three research projects. Firstly, it will present initial findings from the ‘Citizens in Policing’ research programme. The research programme is the largest of its kind ever conducted in the UK, empirically exploring a range of different manifestations of citizen involvement in policing. The research draws on in-depth interviews with serving and former Special Constables and Police Support Volunteers across England and Wales, also engaging with ‘Regular’ police officers to explore issues of cultural integration in respect of volunteers, and with senior police leaders to explore issues of strategic culture in respect of citizen involvement. Secondly, the paper will discuss the analysis of the findings from the national ‘Citizens in Policing’ survey undertaken in early 2016 in England and Wales. Finally, the paper introduces a new comparative research programme across police citizen involvement internationally. The paper explores the implications of different models of citizen involvement in policing, and in particular the apparent bifurcation internationally between policing systems increasing underpinned by direct citizen involvement, and those that are not. It situates developments in police citizen involvement within wider developments in citizen involvement, co-production, responsibilisation and ownership in public services, and discusses the social implications of a further growth in police voluntarism, plotting out several possible courses for the future development of citizen involvement in policing

Assessing the role, value and effectiveness of mental health triage: Operation Alloy

Operation Alloy is an initiative involving a partnership between police officers and mental health professionals to deliver street triage services direct to people experiencing mental health distress. The rationale for this is to ensure a timely response for better outcomes to service users, and enhance inter-agency working to ensure individuals were directed to the most appropriate services relative to their need. This reports provides a review of the operation which has been achieved through (i) a literature review, (ii) statistical analysis of police records and (iii) semi-structured interviews with control room staff, police officers, and mental health professionals

'There comes a point where people just can't cope': exploring the views and experiences of frontline officers

This study investigated the views and experiences of frontline officers. It aimed to explore: 1. Motivations for working on the frontline; 2. Factors influencing job satisfaction; 3. Communication and change; 4. Factors effecting operational performance and 5. Partnership working across the different participating agencies engaged in the criminal justice system. Semi-structured interviews were completed with 26 frontline officers working in a range of departments and roles. Qualitative data obtained via interviews were analysed thematically, using Braun and Clarke's (2006) six steps of thematic data analysis (1. Familiarisation; 2. Generation of initial codes; 3. Searching for themes; 4. Reviewing themes; 5. Defining and naming themes; 6. Write-up). This focus of this poster is the presentation of findings relating to the wellbeing of frontline officers. The analysis revealed how frontline officers were passionate about delivering positive outcomes for communities and people in need. In response to changing staffing levels and profiles, linked with a climate of economic constraint, accounts of frustration were linked with a desire to meet a (self-)imposed standard of quality in their engagements with the public. The data showed how frontline officers were going over-and-above to meet expectations, which has potential implications for stress, anxiety and an imbalanced home-work life. There were mixed viewpoints on the management of wellbeing by senior officers, with some being depicted as uncaring and not valuing the person outside of their formal role. The poster will present implications for the management of frontline officers by senior officers and call for a renewed focus on improving the wellbeing of officers on the frontline. While organisational strategies are welcomed, it is critical for supervising officers to create an everyday culture that prioritises wellbeing of frontline officers

‘They’re much more willing to be violent’: exploring risk within the views and experiences of frontline officers

This study investigated the views and experiences of frontline officers. It aimed to explore: 1. Motivations for working on the frontline; 2. Factors influencing job satisfaction; 3. Communication and change; 4. Factors effecting operational performance and 5. Partnership working across the different participating agencies engaged in the criminal justice system. Semi-structured interviews were completed with 26 frontline officers working in a range of departments and roles. Qualitative data obtained via interviews were analysed thematically, using Braun and Clarke's (2006) six steps of thematic data analysis (1. Familiarisation; 2. Generation of initial codes; 3. Searching for themes; 4. Reviewing themes; 5. Defining and naming themes; 6. Write-up). The focus of this poster is the presentation of findings relating to the assumption of risk within incidents responded to by frontline officers. While risk exposure is a central and consistent aspect of being a frontline officer, the analysis suggests that the nature of risk on the frontline was changing, epitomised through an increase in violence. An important aspect of this was a decreasing sense of safety and security on working on frontline, which is related to resource limitations (including human, financial and equipment). Alongside exposure to risk, participants described being placed into ‘impossible situations’ where they have to decide what the ‘least worst’ option is. The poster will present implications for the management of frontline officers by senior officers and call for a renewed focus on improving the wellbeing and safety of officers on the frontline

Fast-tracking vulnerable young people into the police cadets

In January 2019, Nottinghamshire Police launched a pilot project named ‘Fast tracking of Vulnerable Young people into the VPC’, working in partnership with the National Volunteer Police Cadets. This nationally pioneering project aimed to trial a new model for enhancing the methodology for engaging vulnerable young people into the VPC programme. This initial evaluation aimed to provide an independent assessment of the programme, documenting progress and identify developmental areas. Overall, the evidence presented in this report demonstrates how the Nottinghamshire Fast-Tracking Vulnerable Young People into the Cadets Pilot has been very successful. The introduction of a new position, the VPC Youth Engagement Officer, has strengthened Nottinghamshire Police’s commitment to youth engagement and enables more and wider opportunities for young people to positively engage with policing

The lives of young Polish migrants residing in Northamptonshire

This thesis investigates the lives of young Polish migrants living in Northamptonshire, who migrated to the UK following Poland’s accession to the European Union in May 2004. Over 1.1 million Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) applications were made in the UK between May 2004 and December 2010, of which around two-thirds were made by Polish nationals. It is noted that high numbers of young people in Poland migrated to the UK, and a little under half of all WRS applications in the UK have been migrants aged between 18 and 24 years. Research exploring the lives of young migrants details strong connections between migration and life course progression. Given the relatively young ages of those migrating, this thesis is concerned with the impacts of migratory experiences upon migrants’ senses of ‘self-identity’, and transitions through the life course. Explanations for these movements have often treated migration as an ‘empirical event’ by focusing upon economic rationales, and much less attention has been given to motivations for migration, everyday experiences and future intentions of A8 migrants. To address this gap, this research explores the biographies of 40 young Polish migrants, revealing individual factors that influenced their migratory decision-making, and considering distinguishing features that set groups of Polish migrants apart. To achieve this, participants were asked to prepare a narrative of their experiences, based upon four biographical periods: life in Poland, the decision to migrate, life in the UK and perceived future pathways. Following this, 10 case studies were conducted with participants different ‘types’ of Polish migrant. Semi-structured interviews were organised and participants led ‘photo tours’ of their everyday locales. The findings show that while economic triggers were important to decision-making, it was also the case that social factors were critical, and migration to the UK for some was viewed as a means of leaving the parental home. Traditional social markers of difference, such as gender or age, were found to be of less importance: rather, participants emphasised a range of shared migratory experiences: ‘priorities’, ‘planning’, ‘stability’ and ‘language’. The themes of ‘temporariness’ and ‘trust’ were found to be central to everyday experiences, and participants indicated they were vulnerable to exploitation from other Polish migrants, as well as from known contacts pre-dating migration. Connections were identified between participants’ migratory experiences and their transitions though the life course. Four factors were found to have influenced participants’ transitions through the life course - spaces, times, self identity and support - which combine to form the relative pace(s), ‘smoothness’ and risks of such changes. The term ‘turbulent transitions’ is used to encapsulate major changes within participants’ biographies as a result of migration, which many experienced as being made quickly with limited access to support structures and in environments that contain high degrees of risk. The research calls for a more sensitive account of post-accession migration, which can only be achieved by exploring the experiences, encounters and biographies of migrant

Clinical Lead Mental Health Treatment Requirement (MHTR) Manual

This resource is aimed at Clinical Leads to support the development of Mental Health Treatment Requirement (MHTR) pathways, processes and protocols across England and Wales. Clinical Leads may wish to share this document with Primary Care MHTR Practitioners within the local site. This document should be reviewed in conjunction with the Community Sentence Treatment Requirement Operating Framework and is supplemented by Primary Care MHTR Practitioner Manual. This document has been reviewed by the CSTR Chairs, Clinical Leads and Primary Care Practitioners. It has been circulated to the national CSTR programme board who has in turn shared it with partner agencies (inc. NHS England and NHS Improvement, and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service) for review and wider comments. Finally, it has also been reviewed by the NHSE/I clinical reference group. Within the resource, you will find the following information with supporting template documentation being provided in the appendices: •Overview of Mental Health Treatment Requirements; •Information to inform the design and development of the MHTR intervention; •Overview of the role of the Clinical Lead

Fast-tracking vulnerable young people into the police cadets briefing paper : Initial Evaluation of the Nottinghamshire Volunteer Police Cadets (VPC) Pilot

In January 2019, Nottinghamshire Police launched a pilot project named ‘Fast tracking of Vulnerable Young people into the VPC’, working in partnership with the National VPC. There are currently 7 senior cadet units and 5 junior cadet units in Nottinghamshire. This pioneering project aimed to trial a new model for engaging vulnerable young people into the VPC programme. This initial evaluation provides an independent assessment of the programme, documenting progress and identifying developmental areas. The approach to involved: - Desktop analysis of quantitative data provided to IPSCJ by Nottinghamshire Police, in respect of the operation and delivery of the pilot project; - Interviews with strategic stakeholders and operational and delivery leads; and - Interviews/focus groups with Cadets involved in the programme

Client Perspectives of the CSTR Pilot in Northamptonshire

This report explores the perspectives and views of women who were sentenced to a Community Sentence Treatment Requirement (CSTR) pathway. It should be noted that whilst the term CSTR is used throughout this report, it only refers to individuals who are sentenced to a Mental Health Treatment Requirement (MHTR) as part of their Community Order. The rationale for using the term CSTR is that some of the women are also sentenced to other types of Community Order alongside an MHTR

Understanding Dementia within National Dementia Policy in England: A Critical Discourse Analysis: Judith Sixsmith

Background Dementia is recognised as a public health priority globally. There are around 800,000 people with dementia in the UK and by 2040; this figure is expected to double. Since the publication of the ‘Living Well with Dementia’: A National Dementia Strategy’ in 2009 in England, a series of dementia policies have been established to improve the lives of people with dementia through increased societal awareness of dementia, earlier diagnosis and a cultural change in health and social care. This research aimed to identify dominant discourses underpinning national policy and consider their implications on the development of health and social care training