Almost every organisation we work with here at Leapwise is encountering some challenges in navigating complex technological change. Whether that’s due to legacy IT, the difficulty of interfacing with national systems, or even the human side of helping the workforce keep pace with generative AI tools, it’s a common problem across the public sector.
For policing, that technological challenge is felt even more keenly. The combination of squeezed budgets, a diffuse 43-force system, and problems upgrading old tech infrastructure undoubtedly creates significant pressure. For busy leaders and system reformers, that means this area needs more focus than ever.
In this ‘external voices’ Leapwise blog, we asked new Merseyside Chief Constable Rob Carden – the NPCC Lead for Digital, Data, and Technology (DDaT) – and his deputy lead Tony Blaker QPM to share their expert insights around this crucial topic ahead of the NPCC Innovation and Digital Summit in October.
Why Police Technology is Crucial for Delivering the Government’s Safer Streets Mission – Chief Constable Rob Carden and Tony Blaker QPM’s View
When we think about DDaT in policing, we generally avoid thinking about the technologies or tools first. Instead, we start by reflecting on the fundamental priorities facing our sector over the next few years.
If we take the Government’s Safer Streets Mission as an example, it clearly presents an enormous set of challenges. How can we slash knife crime or violence against women and girls (VAWG) while navigating what can feel like constrained funding for digital investment? What does it actually take for policing to become more effective and efficient in this difficult environment?
We are clear about one major part of the answer to that question, you cannot deliver Safer Streets (in either sense) without getting the DDaT approach in the right place. The ability to reduce knife crime is reliant on using data effectively to map incidents and spot trends. Similarly, tackling VAWG requires digital tools for online investigations. DDaT and delivery are inseparable from each other.
4 key insights around police technology
In our work as the national lead and deputy lead for DDaT, we constantly engage with digital experts who have great ideas that could improve public safety. We also know that police leaders are keen to hear them but sometimes aren’t sure how to approach this fast-changing priority area.
To help, here are 4 key insights we think are important around police technology today:
1. DDaT should be the arrowhead for the new wave of system reform
Everyone in policing recognises how live the current reform agenda is, with lots of anticipation, excitement, and uncertainty on all sides. From blue-sky discussions about a regional force model to concrete work on a national centre of policing, it’s clear that this is a moment where a great deal could change. We welcome that and believe there are opportunities for both savings and coordination across the system.
However, we are both worried about how DDaT plays into that reform. We now have a strong set of police technology leaders with reasonably aligned views on what needs to happen to make the most of police tech, but it’s not yet clear enough that this agenda is seen as absolutely central to reform.
DDaT is the strategic enabler for all of the important frontline policing delivery work we do. As we’ve already said, it’s crucial for delivering Safer Streets and so it should be the arrowhead for this new wave of system reform.
2. We need a paradigm shift around police tech – not tweaking at the edges
If we accept that DDaT should be at the heart of system reform, the next question is about the level of ambition we should be embracing in this space. In our view, the answer must be a paradigm shift around police technology.
At a strategic level, our technology is reliant on a complex set of legacy systems that have cost billions of pounds over time to build and run. But they’re no longer able to do what’s needed in the modern age. Our way of delivering technology is at the end of its lifecycle, and tweaking at the edges is not going to solve that fundamental problem. We need to think bigger.
Thinking bigger means we cannot survive with 43 forces all doing their own things around DDaT. There will need to be some element of mandation from the centre to improve efficiency and interoperability. Individual leaders will have to accept a bit less control but will see much greater benefits if we build a truly joined-up system. The next stage around digital must be more centralised.
3. Digital leadership doesn’t only include the force IT expert – chief officers must be tech-savvy too
For a long time, digital and ICT were seen as the responsibility of functional leads only. Of course, there is a reason for that. The head of a force ICT function should obviously be the main technical expert. As the specialist lead, they provide that deep knowledge that cannot be offered by chief constables (or other chief officers) who have a broader range of complex responsibilities.
However, every chief constable should, in our view, now see themselves as a digital leader. We still sometimes hear those in policing talk about ‘people’ as if the human resources you have determine delivery alone. That’s obviously not true. It’s the combination of people, data, digital tools, and other enablers that allows the workforce to be precise and productive. Leaders must always now consider the digital dimension.
So, practically, what should chiefs and others do? First, actively seek out opportunities to learn more about digital: our upcoming summit provides a great space to do so. Secondly, just as you might join a ride-along, take an interest in the practical reality of police technology. Understand the challenges your IT department faces and be present in those spaces too to learn more or hear their ideas directly.
4. AI offers impressive capabilities – but it’s very hard to use it well
Finally, one briefer thought around the police AI conversation. Everyone knows the possibilities are huge. There are impressive use-cases both in policing and more widely. It’s right that people are excited and that they are talking about this.
We simply want to stress that AI cannot be the answer to all problems in policing. People tend to assume it’s easy to use AI well, but in fact it’s very hard. Implementing it effectively in a complex legal environment requires careful thought and consideration. AI isn’t a magic wand and upfront investment might be needed to lay the foundations for the most exciting innovations to be put in place.
Join the police tech conversation
Both of us are clear that DDaT should always be high up the agenda in modern policing. But with system reform underway and the implications for the police tech agenda still uncertain, we think it needs even more attention in the months ahead.
In line with that approach, we at the NPCC DDaT Committee have partnered with the NPCC Innovation Committee, Police Digital Service, and Office of the Police Chief Scientific Adviser to host an Innovation and Digital Summit from 20th-22nd October. We think leaders across policing should be part of the important decisions that happen there. So, please learn more and register to attend here.
To learn more about how leaders and the wider workforce can navigate complex technological change, you can also reach out to the Leapwise team via the button below.