Have you heard about the new policing reforms announced by the Home Office and endorsed by the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) and Police Foundation? Do you have your finger on the pulse of the major changes to policing on the horizon, described as the biggest reset to policing since the 1960s?
An ambitious programme of reform to policing was recently unveiled by the Home Secretary, marking the “start of a new partnership between government and policing”. These are important subjects to stay abreast of. The impacts are huge over the next few years and leaders need to anticipate such changes. But I understand most busy cops simply don’t have time to read and digest this detailed information.
So in my latest premium podcast, I’ve done the hard work for you! S4E43 is called, ‘Are You Fit for Future Policing? I summarise these pending changes and relay what it means for you as an aspiring police leader, along with the relevance to your CPD as a promotion candidate.
In this comprehensive episode, I cover the Home Office reforms, summarise the Police Foundation’s Fit for the Future report and the NPCC’s agenda for reform. Here’s a quick sample (subscribe for access to all my >100 quality police leadership podcasts):
Please excuse the cold I had recording this! But I won’t be stopped from getting important information and leadership briefings to my premium subscribers who help me keep this popular podcast going!
Your Personal Briefing on Planned National Policing Reforms
“We’re determined to rebuild neighbourhood policing, to improve performance across police forces and to ensure the highest standards are being upheld across the service.” – Home Secretary Yvette Cooper
In a significant part of this 50 minute podcast (among other things), I review the major policing reforms announced by the Home Secretary, which includes the drive for standards and performance management targets. Plans to deliver major policing reforms include…
- Performance Reforms: A new Police Performance Unit to track national data on local performance and to drive up standards
- Neighbourhood Policing: A Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee to get policing back to basics and rebuild trust between local forces and the communities they serve (with 13,000 neighbourhood officers, specials and PCSOs announced)
- Data and Tech: A new National Centre of Policing to harness new technology and forensics, equipping policing to meet the changing nature of crime
What might the new performance priorities and minimum standards be? How might you lead others through this change, or at least demonstrate your strategic awareness of such issues through your presentations or promotion board?
This time-saving and subscriber-only podcast is embedded below. Become a subscriber today to access many more great leadership and promotion insights, save time by focusing your ongoing leadership CPD on what matters.
Thinking on the Future… and Your Future Career
If you are an aspiring police officer aiming at promotion as part of your career development and progression, consider the following questions in this horizon-scanning exercise in strategic thinking:
- What do you know about these proposals?
- What do think they might mean for your force? Or policing nationally?
- Where will you fit into all this as a leader, manager and supervisor?
It’s certainly worth thinking about now, not least because your role as a Sergeant, Inspector or beyond is essentially about leadership for people, performance and change.
Having supported many officers in recent years to achieve promotion successes I encourage candidates who are serious about this goal to get ahead of the curve, now. Many cops unfortunately take that with a pinch of salt, finding out the hard way. But I really do mean right now!
“Effective preparation starts well ahead of any promotion opportunity being advertised.”
Have you recently passed the legal exam, or are qualified and aspire to police promotion in 2025 around the UK? Then I respectfully suggest that the time to start building momentum toward your goal is today.
I’ve lost count of the times in supportive 1-2-1 coaching conversations I have with clients asking questions like the following. These could easily be considered as practice promotion board questions or presentations scenarios…
- “What do you believe are some of the challenges facing policing in the next few years?”
- “What professional and personal challenges do you think you will face as a newly promoted leader?”
- “How will you lead your team through the challenges and uncertainty ahead?”
Don’t be too surprised to find these (predictable, when you’ve done the work) topics featuring in future promotion processes in the near future. Whether that’s your interview board, presentation task or briefing exercise, it’ll be coming down the line to assess you against the CVF, whether you’re using SIPP or NPPF.
Getting Fit for the Future…
The police reform agenda will be implemented over coming years. A white paper is to be published in the Spring. When you are successfully promoted, you will be working through a period of seismic change. NPCC Lead Chief Constable Gavin Stephens describes the reform agenda as…
“The biggest reset to policing since the 1960s.”
So, are you fit for the future of policing? The time to ask yourself that is now.
You can see for yourself in the words of officers who were recently successful in promotions to various ranks, just how valuable the Rank Success Promotion and Leadership Podcast can be in ‘getting you match fit’ for future promotion opportunities. Note how officers often allude to subscribing months ahead of their opportunity being announced, before then securing their promotion success with targeted preparation using my structured toolkits.
I hope you enjoy this time-saving briefing on future policing changes. It will also help connect you with the key leadership concepts towards your CPD and police promotion development.
Subscribe to my podcast for loads more premium content like this in an easy-going format, to support my work, and get exclusive discounts off my toolkits. If you want to supercharge your prep and give yourself the best chance of success, invest in yourself today with my PC to Sergeant and Sergeant to Chief Inspector comprehensive toolkits.
Kind Regards, Steve
Seeking police promotion? Want a MASSIVE head start right now? Hit the ground running with your personal digital promotion toolkit, and/or my market-leading Police Promotion Masterclass. There’s nothing else like it to effectively prepare you for success in your leadership aspirations. You can also contact me to arrange more personal coaching support. Or try my podcast for your ongoing police leadership CPD covering a range of fascinating subjects.
