Active Communities
Involving the Public: the Role of Police Authorities
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New research concentrating upon the role of police authorities and how they can engage with communities has been published by The Research and Development Statistics. Having completed 3 different study methods, good practice initiatives in order to bring policing authorities closer to the general public.
Title: Involving the Public: the Role of Police Authorities
Author: Research and Development Statistics
Series: Development and Practice Report 13
Number of Pages: 10
Date Published: November 2003
The 3 elements to the research that was used were:
a telephone survey
a variety of 14 different focus groups, incorporating age, gender, social and ethnic class, held in the North of England, Wales, and the Midlands
Six different case studies from police authorities attempting to innovate community engagement, and encompass a range of different resources, organisation sizes, locations etc.
Findings: Views of the public
General perceptions of policing and accountability issues reflected:
a consensus that the public do not have a say in policing decision-making
the vast majority of participants had not heard of a police authority, and did not know what one was
after learning more about policing authority roles, they agreed on their necessity and usefulness.
desire toward involvement, communication, and involvement toward police initiatives and authorities.
Findings: Communications and public image
The case study research found little public awareness of police authorities and their separate role as a force. 'Police authority' did not convey its name clearly.
Limited resources were used for communications and marketing within the media, although the majority had a web page/site and email. Overall publicity methods appeared minimal.
Findings: Authorities' general approaches to public consultation
Whilst a coherent and strategic approach to consultation can ensure the best use of resources, not all authorities had a strategy yet. Research groups responded positively to multi-agency consultation, following the Crime and Disorder Act (1998)
Findings: The role of police authority members
The research reflected police authority members as playing a vital role in authorities' community engagement work.
Findings: Effectiveness of consultation methods
The findings suggested a marked increase in authorities' use of other consultation mechanisms, such as market research methods.
Specific consultation methods apply particularly to 'hard - to - hear' groups eg minority ethnic groups, people with disabilities etc. who are least likely to respond to traditional engagement methods.
Findings: Barriers to effective consultation
Public research suggested communities would like more of a say in how they are policed, but doubted whether their views will make any real difference. The lack of widespread public participation means the few who are involved tend to be repeatedly consulted by agencies, resulting in 'overload'. The case study authorities recognise that feedback of the effectiveness of consultation were areas for improvement.
Conclusions
The findings indicated police authorities developing more innovative and strategic approaches to engaging the community, but progress still been inconsistent. Future plans should include:
police authorities should review locally their public profile
Police authorities should improve the provision of information to the public about policing and crime
a greater emphasis on marketing their role in promoting opportunities for public participation
authorities should consider a personal approach toward trying to engage people in consultation, for example, using existing community networks.
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Last update: Tuesday, August 26, 2008