Chief Executive says professional body will establish best model for neighbourhood, response and local CID teams.

Chief Constable Alex Marshall told the National Learning and Development Conference in Lancashire that developing a best practice model for local policing teams was one of his three top priorities.

The senior ACPO officer said he had calculated that 66 per cent of British officers worked in Safer Neighbourhood Teams, response teams or local CIDs.

He estimated that 90 per cent of the public’s contact with the Police Service was with officers from these three teams, pointing out that peoples’ overall perception was usually based on their relationship with local officers.

CC Marshall told delegates he believed a lack of visible policing damaged public confidence, adding: “If there’s an absence of policing and if we take time to turn up when something happens, people will think ‘the police aren’t very good around here’.”

He said: “The vast majority of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) manifestoes were focused on the interaction between the public and the police.”

CC Marshall’s comments about local policing come in the wake of some forces announcing sweeping changes to territorial policing to help cope with cuts.

Greater Manchester Police has dissolved its divisional CID teams and placed the detectives into neighbourhood teams, claiming this will better meet the demand for policing in different areas.

The Metropolitan Police is also pushing ahead with reforms to its Territorial Policing model that will see detectives placed in neighbourhood teams.

CC Marshall did not express a view on which local policing model was best but said the College would take an evidence-based approach to establish best practice.

The chief officer, who is aiming to have the College fully up-and-running in the next six months, said his other top priorities for the College were police integrity and public protection.

From Police Oracle