9 - Themes and future directions

Summary

Introduction

Visibility, community engagement and problem-solving remain central to good neighbourhood policing. This book has added the importance of good partnerships and the possibilities of building strong communities. All of these must rest on a solid understanding of the context in which neighbourhood policing arose and the evidence on which it was based; and an understanding of what police legitimacy and public confidence in policing consist of.

This final chapter draws out some of these themes further. It begins by exploring the importance of the political and policy landscape in establishing the context within which neighbourhood policing work takes place. It argues that despite limited short-term grounds for optimism, and below-inflation funding settlements, there may be longer-term reasons to be cheerful. In particular, the establishment of Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) has facilitated a range of work which has itself altered the conditions in which policing strategies are made; and the possibility of a change of government in the next several years may also enhance that environment.

This strategic level of governance is also crucial for neighbourhood policing. Recent years have seen something of a renaissance in neighbourhood policing and the seriousness with which these tasks are addressed, thanks to the development of College of Policing (CoP) guidelines (2018b) and the incorporation of community policing as part of the Policing Education Qualifcations Framework (PEQF) curriculum. However, confidence has not returned to its previous centrality as a policing purpose, and this seems unlikely in the current context. This means that the onus is on forces and on neighbourhood officers themselves to ensure that confidence is kept as a driving force behind neighbourhood policing activity.

Likewise, forces and neighbourhood officers can do little to affect the tension that exists between law enforcement and legitimation in policing; nor the cyclical nature by which this comes to public attention. However, they can remain conscious of it. This third theme identifies some areas in which this tension can manifest itself and some hidden dangers in trying to reconcile them.

Finally, the chapter re-examines the central role that relationships play in neighbourhood policing, through making police accessible and visible, to engaging with the community, solving problems and working with partners.