What does the UK Police National Database tell us about the future of police intelligence?

Phythian, Rebecca; Kirby, Stuart

doi:10.1093/police/paac074

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…a crime report) (Lambri et al, 2011) even when crossing borders. Whilst the PND shows the technology exists to provide innovative information sharing systems, there are significant challenges and hardware costs (Phythian and Kirby, 2022). However, the main obstacle appears to come from practitioners who express caution about Approaches to information sharing sharing information to this degree.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Challenges can include cost (Asthana et al, 2002) and the lack of Approaches to information sharing compatibility across agency systems (Wilson and Gray, 2015). Whilst technical issues are important, they are rarely the main obstacle (Phythian and Kirby, 2022), with procedural or cultural tensions more prevalent. This is unsurprising.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hubs [MASH]; Shorrock et al, 2020) and technology-facilitated (i.e. Phythian and Kirby, 2022). However, they are often considered in isolation and/or feature information sharing as one factor in a broader discussion.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This avoids duplication, improves governance and coordination, generates timely and accurate risk recognition and enables early intervention. Researchers also point out that integrated information systems can provide more detail to assist collective decision making (Phythian and Kirby, 2022; Trevillion, 2001). Unfortunately, the link between policy design and practice often breaks down (Wilson and Gray, 2015), as agencies (including the police) struggle to share information effectively and efficiently.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Understanding how law enforcement agencies share information in an intelligence-led environment: how operational context influences different approaches

Phythian,

Kirby,

Swan-Keig

2024

PIJPSM

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PurposeThe importance of multi-agency information sharing is recognised as central to tackling crime and disorder in an intelligence-driven environment. However, whilst technology can facilitate and enhance this process, barriers to effective agency information exchange are consistently reported. This paper aims to categorise how information sharing takes place in a law enforcement operational setting and whether there is scope to improve the process.Design/methodology/approachThere were two stages to the method; firstly, a select group of practitioners with intelligence-related experience (n = 28) were interviewed to identify the most common approaches to operational information sharing. This generated a categorisation model, which was tested with a larger group of practitioners (n = 73). A mixed-methods approach was adopted.FindingsThe research found consensus surrounding four different approaches to information sharing, labelled as: (1) inform and request, (2) meet and share, (3) customised database and (4) integrated systems. These are used at various levels of frequency, dependent on the operational context.Originality/valueThis research provides original evidence-based research to show law enforcement practitioners vary in the way they share information. By demystifying and categorising the process, it provides understanding for practitioners, policymakers and researchers, allowing barriers to be more readily tackled in a much more cost-effective manner.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Understanding how law enforcement agencies share information in an intelligence-led environment: how operational context influences different approaches

Phythian,

Kirby,

Swan-Keig

2024

PIJPSM

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Improving Police Data Collection to Measure Repeat Demand: A Focus on Domestic Violence and Abuse

Phoenix

2023

Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice

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Targeting police resources at repeat demand may reduce overall demand. To effectively target resources at repetition requires repeat demand to be accurately measured in police data. Using domestic violence and abuse (DVA) as a case study of repeat demand, this study takes a deep dive into the data and information systems used by one police force to identify the key issues that prevent the effective measurement of repeat DVA-related demand. From observations of the police response to DVA and manual review of 325 DVA case files, four key issues are identified: (1) fragmented units of measurement across multiple information systems; (2) inconsistent recording of personal details; (3) multiple methods of identifying DVA; and (4) the embedding of information in free-text. This paper makes recommendations to improve the measurement of repeat demand in police data, with implications for police practitioners and researchers.

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Investigating methods of sharing data between police, health, education, and social services: Semi-structured interviews with police service areas in Wales

Jones,

Bandyopadhyay,

Kennedy

et al. 2024

The Police Journal: Theory, Practice and Principles

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The Crime and Disorder Act (1998) requires the police, local authorities, NHS, and other organisations to share intelligence and collectively work to reduce violent crime. This paper aimed to explore opinions on linking police data with other agency data. Interviews were undertaken with individuals from police forces in Wales, UK. Barriers to sharing data with other organisations involve differences in the systems used to store police data and uncertainties around what is allowed to be shared. Overcoming barriers would allow data linkage across organisations leading to deeper insights into the causes of violence, and therefore intelligence that supports crime prevention. Background The Crime and Disorder Act of 1998 requires the police, local authorities, the NHS, and other organisations to work together on collective approaches to reduce crime and to analyse shared data to inform resource allocation decisions. Data sharing has been conducted on a per-project basis, but it is rare for whole population data to be linked across organisations. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility of linking national data from the police with national data from other agencies including health data from General Practitioners, hospitals, and Emergency Departments (EDs). In addition, this study explored the views and opinions from police service areas in Wales on using a single software system to cover all police service areas for public protection purposes and to facilitate sharing data with other agencies. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 36 individuals from the 4 police services in Wales along with representatives from the Violence Prevention Unit (VPU) and the Police Liaison Unit (PLU). The interviews were analysed using codebook thematic analysis to generate key themes from qualitative responses. Results Two key themes and seven sub-themes were developed from the qualitative data. The key themes include the following: (1) Opinions on the systems used in the police for public protection including thoughts on the current system and moving to using one system. (2) Opinions on data sharing including what data should be shared, benefits of data sharing, barriers to data sharing (within the police and across organisations), and overcoming barriers to data sharing. Interviewees identified that a proprietary relational database, Niche, was the most used system for public protection, was highly regarded, and individuals felt that if all forces moved to the same system this would be a positive development. However, work needs to be undertaken to ensure there is a minimum dataset entered in each area as there is high variability in data quality. Barriers included not knowing what was possible to share and fear of sharing. An unambiguous framework endorsed at a high level of what data should and shouldn’t be shared was recommended to overcome this. Conclusions The main barriers to shared police data included a lack of clarity around data governance and what is appropriate to share. It was felt that sharing should be the default position and with support these barriers could be removed. Data sharing between agencies would require high-level support and unambiguous guidelines as to what data can be shared, with whom, and in what format.

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What does the UK Police National Database tell us about the future of police intelligence?

Cited by 3 publications

References 30 publications

Understanding how law enforcement agencies share information in an intelligence-led environment: how operational context influences different approaches

Understanding how law enforcement agencies share information in an intelligence-led environment: how operational context influences different approaches

Improving Police Data Collection to Measure Repeat Demand: A Focus on Domestic Violence and Abuse

Investigating methods of sharing data between police, health, education, and social services: Semi-structured interviews with police service areas in Wales

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