College of Policing review: make your voices heard

24 March 2021

Humberside Police Federation chair Pete Musgrave is encouraging members to help shape the future of the College of Policing.

A fundamental review of the College of Policing has been launched by its new chair Nick Herbert (Lord Herbert of South Downs) and Pete says it's important it captures the views and experiences of members.

Pete said: “Policing is constantly changing, not least with the impact of the pandemic and the various lockdown measures, and our members are right on the frontline of that.

“They understand the needs of officers and the service and are ideally placed to feed into this review.

“It’s important their views are captured so we can help the college to develop and evolve and continue to meet the needs of modern policing.”

 The review aims to:

• Conduct a fundamental assessment of the college, its role, effectiveness and how it operates alongside other organisations in the policing landscape

• Ensure that, as the professional body for policing, the college is highly valued by every section of policing, from frontline officers to chief constables and police and crime commissioners. 

The review will consider the college’s role in all aspects of policing, from how well it supports professional development, shares good practice, and sets standards through to how useful people working on the frontline find the college’s services.

The review will also look at the relationship between the college and other policing organisations and how well equipped it is to support the police service to deal with future challenges.

Lord Herbert said: “This is a critical time in policing with the demands and pressures on the service only increasing during the pandemic.

“I believe the time is right to look at the work that the college does, as well as the place that it occupies in the policing landscape.

“It’s important that we explore how effective the college is in supporting a police service whose mission has been extended and capability stretched over the last 10 years. 

“I’m keen that we listen to people from across policing, regardless of their rank, grade or role, to find what they want from their College of Policing and help us identify the areas where we need to improve.” 

Anyone with an interest in policing including police officers and staff can feed into the review. The college is contacting a number of policing organisations – including the Police Federation, National Police Chiefs’ Council and the Police Superintendents’ Association – to ask for their views. 

John Apter, the national chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, has welcomed the review.

He said: “This root and branch review is a great opportunity to make the College of Policing more meaningful and relevant to rank and file officers, providing them with the training, guidance and support they deserve.

“The review must, therefore, be bold and brave to ensure the college is fit for purpose. The Police Federation will play an active part, feeding into the review to ensure that the views of our members are heard and acted upon.”

Anyone with an interest in policing can feed into the review. Have your say by downloading the form below and emailing your views to review@college.pnn.police.uk by 30 April 2021.

College of Policing review – call for evidence (docx) 63.57 KB.