As key partners within Integrated Offender Management, police officers routinely perform an offender supervision role which works not only as a deterrent against reoffending, but in support of offenders to help them turn their lives around. In order to achieve this aim, they develop a working relationship with their offenders which this study explores through an in-depth analysis of fourteen semi-structured qualitative interviews with seven pairs of police officers and offenders who have developed relationships with each other. Conducted as an exploratory study, this thesis makes a unique contribution to knowledge by exploring these relationships in the context of multi-agency arrangements, police culture, criminological theory and sociological theories of relationships. Using grounded theory to analyse interviews, this study found that what makes these relationships distinct is the correctional context in which they exist, which despite adversarial boundaries of crime control allowed a variety of predominately positive relationships to succeed. Furthermore, police officers in this study worked with offenders to support positive change with methods which included the use of their relationship as a therapeutic intervention. Finding that these relationships reflect the complexity of all relationships and can be similarly understood through typologies which characterise relationships by how behaviourally interdependent they are, this study concludes that in a criminological context these relationships are ultimately beneficial for supporting both compliance with the law and offenders efforts to desist from offending. This study therefore has implications for both policy and practice, as well as research into desistance from offending within a multi-agency setting.

Crime is promoted by the government as being the primary task of the police, yet such a focus marginalizes the extraordinary prominence and relevance of many non-crime policing activities. This research highlights the breadth and complexity of those duties, filling a gap in the literature by exploring the possible future of non-crime policing. The research draws on extensive literary sources and utilizes quantitative data covering eight years of public calls made to the Staffordshire Police. The research includes qualitative data obtained from thirteen semi-structured interviews with individuals who have extensive policing experience. The research found that public demand for policing declined over the reviewed period, with staffing levels in Staffordshire dropping and government funding falling drastically. There were marked increases in ‘concern for safety’ incidents, ‘suicides’ and cases involving individuals suffering mental health crises. The research explored policing from a historical perspective drawing on European and British history, ancient and modern, in order to help shine a light on prospective future developments. The research suggested that policing is torn between those who feel that non-crime matters are important and those who think that policing should be largely crime-focused. Concerns were raised about the on going politicization of policing, the extended police hierarchy and the impact of neo-liberalism on non-crime demand. Non-crime policing appears to be moving incrementally towards pluralization and privatisation, though it could also help initiate a more unified, internationalized policing service built around human rights. All futures remain open and it is up to all of us to decide what that future will ultimately be.

Fairness and equity are necessary in the provision by the state of a public good such as policing. It is against this backdrop that this research set out to assess the distribution of policing as a public good in the north inner city of Dublin and if this distribution can be explained by an analysis of external power on the Garda Síochána. The Minister for Justice has a legitimate right to exert overt democratic power over the police service, but it is argued here that there are other types of external power that affect the delivery of a fair and equitable police service. The north inner city of Dublin presents the Garda Síochána with a significant policing challenge. Within its boundaries all facets of modern urban life can be observed from extreme poverty to extreme wealth. This research is premised on the concept that power though intangible is a capacity whose workings are not easily observed. However, the existence of external power can be deduced from the outcomes achieved by certain groups in society. By using a qualitative research methodology, which employed semi-structured interviews it was possible to say counterfactually that external power on the Garda Síochána exists. This external power distorts the conduct of policing to such an extent that it is evident that those with social capital (the business community) exercise a disproportionate degree of power and that this power adversely affects the fairness and equitable distribution of a public police service within Dublin’s north inner city. The influence of this external power also has a negative effect on police professionalism and could lead to corruption. It is suggested that by engaging in critical reflection and with open peer review, informed by Rawlsian principles of justice, some of the effects of this external power could be mitigated by bringing the ‘why’ of policing decisions out into the open.

This thesis examines inter-organisational or collaborative change. The research commenced with an investigation of organisational change in policing and then broadened to encompass other organisations in the public and private sectors, thereby enabling comparison and contrast. The intention was to explore first principles of best practice for organisations embarking upon collaborative change. The researcher was motivated to learn and develop his thinking as a consequence of professional exposure to this area of strategic management. The exponential growth in the number and complexity of collaborative schemes, coupled with a reported pan sector failure rate of 60% - 80%, underlines the topicality and relevance of this research. In the public sector, there is evidence of a new collaborative paradigm emerging, driven by ideology and austerity. Available evidence indicates that the police have been slow to embrace these changes and achieve the benefits desired. The methodological approach commenced with systematic and targeted reviews of existing literature. Gaps and contradictions were explored and used to inform the primary research, which consisted of forty-three semi-structured interviews and two electronic surveys, producing two hundred and fifty-six responses. The findings suggest that shortcomings in delivering interorganisational change were indicative of wider management failings encompassing other categories of major change. Poor leadership, inadequate resourcing, weak planning, unrealistic timescales and an over emphasis on structure and process, while ignoring the people issues, all contributed to a suboptimal outcome. Opinions were polarised about the performance of the police, where a strong organisational culture, dominant leaderships styles and poor business acumen appear to be conspiring to inhibit ambition and delivery. Ten generic key research findings are discussed, with another dedicated to policing. Collectively, they provide an evidence based foundation for developing best practice for organisations embarking on major inter-organisational change.

This thesis assesses the authority of nineteenth-century chief constables through a study which was based in four northern counties. It challenges the frequently made generalisation that they were powerful and autonomous men whose relationship with the police authorities was close and amicable. The first section investigates the office holders themselves, their backgrounds, characters, reputations and the circumstances of their administration. It estimates their professional standing while they were supervised by Quarter Sessions. The focus then shifts to an exploration of the potential effects of the implementation of the 1888 Local Government Act on the independence of county chief constables. Subsequent chapters examine chief constables' autonomy after Standing Joint Committees took over police supervision, firstly in their control of industrial disruption and then in their day to day management of the force. The core of the enquiry is contained in accounts of how some chief constables were undermined by members of Standing Joint Committees who made direct attempts to deprive them of their authority. However, in contrast, the thesis also outlines the ways in which they benefited from their communication with Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and the Home Office. The thesis concludes with a review of how sources of evidence have contributed to a more complete picture of the authority of the chief constables in the study.

The police use both subjective (i.e. police staff) and automated (e.g. face recognition systems) methods for the completion of visual tasks (e.g person identification). Image quality for police tasks has been defined as the image usefulness, or image suitability of the visual material to satisfy a visual task. It is not necessarily affected by any artefact that may affect the visual image quality (i.e. decrease fidelity), as long as these artefacts do not affect the relevant useful information for the task. The capture of useful information will be affected by the unconstrained conditions commonly encountered by CCTV systems such as variations in illumination and high compression levels. The main aim of this thesis is to investigate aspects of image quality and video compression that may affect the completion of police visual tasks/applications with respect to CCTV imagery. This is accomplished by investigating 3 specific police areas/tasks utilising: 1) the human visual system (HVS) for a face recognition task, 2) automated face recognition systems, and 3) automated human detection systems. These systems (HVS and automated) were assessed with defined scene content properties, and video compression, i.e. H.264/MPEG-4 AVC. The performance of imaging systems/processes (e.g. subjective investigations, performance of compression algorithms) are affected by scene content properties. No other investigation has been identified that takes into consideration scene content properties to the same extend. Results have shown that the HVS is more sensitive to compression effects in comparison to the automated systems. In automated face recognition systems, `mixed lightness' scenes were the most affected and `low lightness' scenes were the least affected by compression. In contrast the HVS for the face recognition task, `low lightness' scenes were the most affected and `medium lightness' scenes the least affected. For the automated human detection systems, `close distance' and `run approach' are some of the most commonly affected scenes. Findings have the potential to broaden the methods used for testing imaging systems for security applications.

This thesis examines the role of the police in school based safeguarding education programmes, with a particular reference to Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. It explores the professional experiences and views of a wide range of professionals within the education and police sector. The safeguarding of children in a modern society is complex and carries a degree of risk to the professionals who protect children from the various types of harm in our communities. This study represents a part of the many strategies available in relation to the key professionals for safeguarding of children. Whilst set in a financially challenging context, the research focused on the role of the police in school based safeguarding programmes and examined their role in a blurred landscape of police and education professionals. The study identified that the Police, or a member of their extended family, are the most valuable resource to present safeguarding awareness programmes to children in a school environment. It emerged that there is limited strategic governance on this point. This study proposes a strategic model for Local Safeguarding Children Boards to consider as part of their role to oversee the safeguarding of children in a local governance setting. This research has Implications for professionals who safeguard children and introduces a change to current professional practice.

The research aims to assess the impact of community policing as overseen by the UK-Department for International Development in Nigeria. This is informed by the increasing rate of crime such as armed robbery, kidnapping, insurgency, corruption and other forms of violence/terrorism in the country. There are perceptions about ‘police/public divide’ in which the members of public are not willing to cooperate with the police in terms of giving useful information that may assist in the prevention and control of crime in Nigeria. This situation has posed a serious threat to the Nigeria police’s ability to strategically position itself in order to perform a range of constitutional roles: protection of live and property as well as maintenance of law and order. Consequently, the UK Department for International Development in conjunction with the Nigerian government introduced community policing policy in 2002/3 to facilitate partnership between the police and community in order to provide safety conditions in the country. However, the prevailing reality suggests that the strategy, after a decade of its policy implementation in Nigeria, was not yielding the desired result because of what seems to be a lack of trust in the police by members of public. The study aims to establish whether or not there is trust gap between the police and members of the public. The available literatures do not adequately address this concern; hence the focus of this research is to examine the pattern of relationships between the police and community as co-producers of security of lives and property in Nigeria. The research adopts an interpretative framework to access the meaning attached to community policing from the perspectives of the stakeholders themselves. The empirical part of the study is qualitative in approach and engages the police and community in focus group discussions and individual in-depth interviews in Kogi State of north central Nigeria. The data obtained from field work have been analysed and the key findings in the context of these empirical data have indicated that the desired positive impact of the implementation of community policing policy has not been fulfilled. This is as a result of the relationships gap between the police and community in Nigeria occasioned by the mistrust in the police by the members of public. This gap has a very dangerous implication on the country’s desire to achieve a sense of community safety and security in Nigeria. The risk factors in this regard are that the prevailing family norms, values and the influence of community networks do not allow the community to report cases to the police. Perceptions of corruption by the police and community have negatively affected behaviours and the sense of trust needed to foster relationships among the stakeholders.

This thesis provides an examination of the historical development and changing management of community policing by reflecting the impact of complexity on the work and role of modern police process, as particularly exhibited in the function and role of the Police Community Support Officer (PCSO). The research, which is central to the review, combines the perceptions of front line police ranks, police managers and members of the public to consider whether their expectations of community policing are the same. Subject responses to scenario based questions associated with common incidents to which the police might respond, were visually mapped and subsequently compared. The resulting maps indicate that there are, in some cases, significant differences between actions and expectations of the three study groups. This highlights the impact and influence of complex systems on police process, evidencing the need to apply and be aware of alternative methods to resolve complex problems in the community.

This study explores the prevalence and effects of Transcultural Relativism within back office collaborative ventures, within the police service. The study seeks to investigate how cultures, within newly formed collaborative ventures can influence the performance of collaborative working within “back office functions” undertaken within section twenty three agreements, Police and Crime Act (s23) and how these factors can be identified and effectively managed. Theory such as Lewin (1947) and Deal and Kennedy (2000) argue for an imperative to adjust / modify culture within collaborative working and I have further identified a gap in the wider literature when cultural change, brought about by strategic change is undertaken within the section twenty three agreements. This gap in the knowledge will be explored and minimised through undertaking three research studies within two Police Forces. The studies will draw upon existing theoretical concepts regarding the influences of organisational culture such as Lewin (1947), Hofstede et al (2005) and Schein (2010). My conceptual framework reveals new and emerging theory regarding the management of organisations cultures within (s23) and the researcher will apply these models in conjunction with the established theory. The inductive approach is supported through mixed methods of data harvesting and applying an interpretivist and constructivist epistemological and ontological perspective respectively. The researcher was himself based as a senior manager within the police service for the majority of the duration of the study and through this unique position, developed an ethnographical paradigm of enquiry, by applying a multiple lens of observation as participant, ethnographic interviews and research survey. Data obtained from these enquiry methods was transcribed, coded and thematised before in-depth analysis undertaken based upon priori and emerging themes. The researcher, due to the rich nature of the qualitative data, undertook coding and thematising of the data, systematically, in order to contextualise the paradigm from both a hermeneutic and constructivist approach identifying meaning and understanding from beyond the constructed reality. My research findings largely concur that within this research environment organisational culture follows strategy formation from a dual perspective, management defined and user self-selection. Collaborative mechanisms influence the pace and strength of emerging cultures with associated performance biases. This study develops new frontiers of theory and emerging practice, extending current theoretical and praxis application, informing professional practice within the police service, whilst acknowledging that the research will have transferability and practical applications into other public sector related disciplines.