The vital role of data in policing

The Centre for Data and Analytics in Policing are looking to recruit a Senior Product Management Lead who will oversee the build of tools that drive improvements across policing, nationally.

You can find out more about the role and how to apply here. Closing date is 22 September, 2024.

22 years ago, I joined policing to roll over car bonnets and catch criminals.

While I’d like to say that I’ve done a fair bit of both, it’s fair to say that my policing career has been incredibly varied – taking me from investigations, to intelligence, right up to local policing as the local responsible officer for organised crimes and gangs in Birmingham.

All of those roles, in one way or another, have shown me the value of data.

This was no more apparent in one of my biggest roles to date, Senior Investigating Officer on Operation Fort – an investigation into a Polish Organised Crime Gang (OCG) who were exploiting fellow Polish nationals. Targeting those most vulnerable, victims would be lured to the UK with the promise of work and a better life. In reality, they found themselves in truly dire living conditions, working day and night in tough, menial roles, with wages being taken by OCG members to fund their own lavish lifestyles.

To date, it is the largest investigation into Modern Slavery that this country has ever seen.

Due to the sheer size of the operation, there was a significant amount of information and intelligence to get through, to surface what was going on.

Thankfully, natural language processing allowed our team to process huge amounts of data to build a picture and demonstrate what was going on behind closed doors and away from public glare.

With four trials so far and sentencing that (to date) spans across 80 years for those convicted, I saw first-hand just how important data can be in delivering good, effective policing - and justice.

Another role saw me responsible for all investigations into organised crime and gangs across Birmingham. At this time we were only just starting to understand the full threat posed by County Lines (CL) activity. That threat was really brought home to me with the murder of Camran Green, a 17-year old who was killed in Gloucester, miles away from his home, while drugs running for a Birmingham based OCG.

The manual effort we had to go to, to get a grip on the individuals involved was extreme, and incredibly time consuming. On a later case of a similar nature, I saw the power of data analytics in removing that need for manual labour.

In utilising the data we had at our fingertips, we were able to target and disable those networks far more quickly. It meant we could get boots out of the office and on the ground, enabling us to support the communities being affected. Seeing that contrast and the impact that data can have was incredibly powerful for me – career changing, even.

I never thought for a minute that I would end up working in data and analytics, particularly at the twilight of my career – but it has been a fantastic experience. I’ve been able to use my operational insight to shape what policing might look like in the future.

Having seen the time and manual effort that used to go into the analysis of information to tackle crime, within this tole I’ve been working to help build tools that will support the teams who are doing the work that I used to do, and keep the public safer.

In a twist of irony, my current role has taken me full circle and back into the world of organised crime, with the trial of a tool that looks to utilise data to understand the movement of drugs around the country and intercept CL networks.

I’m now moving onto ventures new and retiring from policing, and so this role is available, open to someone who too wants to use their operational insight to influence the direction of policing, nationally.

Within this role, you will have the opportunity to influence tools that have a direct impact on the ground.

You will meet people that you may never have come across before, with lots of engagement both inside and outside of policing to ensure we are heading in the right direction in the use of data and analytics.

You do not need to be a tech expert to undertake this role.

The suppliers we are working with provide the technological insight. Instead, you need policing insight to ensure that the technology is presented in a way that can be understood and impactive to everyone.

You need an understanding of the challenges being faced by officers and staff on the ground, to make sure the tools we are building help to tackle those problems and improve policing – for our teams and for the public.

Have an open mind, be inquisitive and remember, the tools being built will mean more boots on the ground and, somewhat ironically, more ‘good old fashioned policing’.