As we approach the end of the year, UK policing finds itself at a pivotal moment of transformation. This post marks the
first in a new NiCE blog series, where we will explore the reform agenda, emerging technologies, and the practical steps forces are taking to prepare for the challenges ahead.
In November,
the Home Secretary confirmed that the role of Police & Crime Commissioner—first introduced in 2012—will be phased out by 2028. Meanwhile,
the Crime and Policing Bill continued its passage through the House of Lords, signalling further, far-reaching reforms to the criminal justice system.
Taken together, these changes aim to reduce costs, tackle serious criminal and societal threats, and rebuild public confidence—not only in policing, but across the wider justice landscape.
Innovation Takes Centre Stage
Just weeks before these announcements, NiCE joined more than 800 policing professionals in Liverpool for the
NPCC Innovation and Digital Summit 2025. The two-day event placed a strong spotlight on the transformative potential of digital tools and modern technology.
Chief Constable Rob Carden, NPCC Lead for Digital, Data and Technology,
distilled the message with clarity: “Digital, data and technology isn’t a support function. It’s intrinsically linked to robust operational policing and above all, the protection of the public we serve. It should be the arrowhead of police reform, whatever that may look like.”
Defining the Challenges Ahead
Shortly after the summit, the NPCC published its
Policing Problem Book, outlining 13 critical challenges that forces must address to remain effective and trusted.
NPCC Chair, Chief Constable Gavin Stephens,
reinforced this urgency at the APCC/NPCC Summit on 18 November: “We need to invest in greater digital expertise to enable the rapid deployment of proven technologies, as it will bring more criminals to justice with less delay, and consequently protect more victims. To inform this science and technology investment, we must be clear about the problems we need to solve, with a focus on diagnostics—before prescription.”
In his comments at the Summit, NPCC Chair Stephens further outlined the
13 challenges that need to be addressed:
- Improving capture and analysis of digital evidence
- Enhancing public contact through strategic digital transformation
- Enabling secure, efficient, and standardised data sharing
- Monitoring community-based offenders, especially high-risk individuals
- Tackling online sexual offences, particularly child exploitation
- Building public trust through fair and transparent practices
- Responsible deployment of surveillance technologies
- Designing out crime opportunities from emerging tech
- Strengthening cybercrime investigation and prevention
- Developing a digitally empowered, data-literate workforce
- Protecting the policing workforce while maintaining service delivery
- Modernising mobility capabilities for future-ready operations
- Embedding innovation and strategic foresight into policing culture
While 13 may seem unlucky to some, here it represents a set of opportunities to drive meaningful and lasting improvement.
Technology in Action
To proactively address these problems, many forces are already embracing the foundations of digital policing through various technological innovations. Technologies such as Digital Evidence Management Systems (DEMS) like
NiCE Evidencentral, body-worn video, and drones are now commonplace across England and Wales. Momentum is also building behind new capabilities, including facial recognition and AI-enabled control room tools—ranging from enhanced workforce management to automatic call transcription and even the potential use of autonomous agents for non-emergency contact.
What’s Next?
Over the coming weeks, this blog series will unpack NPCC’s 13 challenges, spotlighting best practices, innovative thinking, and real-world progress from forces that are already leading the way.
We will examine how existing technologies can deliver far greater value, where gaps still remain, and how the next wave of innovation can support policing for 2026 and the years ahead. For example, while most forces have implemented DEMS, many are only scratching the surface of its potential.
If you haven’t yet read the NPCC’s
Policing Problem Book, you can download it
here.
Stay Tuned
Thank you for joining us for the opening instalment of this series. Keep an eye out for
our second blog, where we will take a deep dive into the steps forces are taking to improve the capture and analysis of digital evidence.
