NPCC pledges major funding for innovation

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and UK Research Innovation (UKRI) have joined forces to boost innovation and seeks out new ways to tackle crime.   

Together they have pledged £4.5m of funding for the creation of up to nine Policing Academic Centres of Excellence (P-ACEs.)   

The centres will improve connections between policing and academic researchers, bringing them together to share evidence and methods and shape practices.  

It is hoped the centres can galvanise researchers, enhance the quality and scale of work in policing, and help establish new evidence led methods for policing to tackle and prevent crime, build public trust, and improve the wider criminal justice system. 

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens said: “Research and innovation is key to transforming policing and ensuring the service is not only fit for purpose but that it delivers the best results for our communities.   

“The technologies which benefit policing are not tools which we can just buy off the shelf, they develop over time in response to our complex needs and are built with the help and support of industry and academia.  That’s why investing in new centres like this are essential.  

“This work will help us to futureproof policing and invest in the tools and technology of tomorrow, today.  

“By bringing researchers, academics and leaders in their fields together with law enforcement we can help prevent and tackle a range of offences using the newest and most innovative methods.”  

Each Policing Academic Centre of Excellence will be promoted across the policing sector as an accessible source of leading academic experts aligned with Policing’s Areas of Research Interest (ARIs) and evidence needs.    

The maximum total value of this opportunity is £5.4 million, with each P-ACE having a maximum total funding of £600,000. The NPCC and UKRI are contributing 80% towards the total value of the fund, valued at £4.5 million.   

 For more information about the fund, please visit: Apply to be recognised as a Policing Academic Centre of Excellence – UKRI