People & Projects at PDS – The future of Data in policing with Kate Boyle and Aimee Smith

“Data is the second most critical asset that policing holds outside of its people, which is of course its number one.” That is how Aimee Smith, Director of Data at the Metropolitan Police Service (MET) and current co-chair of the National Police Data and Analytics Board, describes the importance of data for policing. 

Data permeates and assists every single decision in policing. It is therefore crucial for forces to get it right not only because it enables officers and staff to do their jobs more effectively, but also because it is the foundation of policing by consent. Ensuring safe, secure and appropriate data handling, storage and use is one of the top priorities for policing now and in the future. “If we source and use the wrong data for the wrong outcome across policing, we’re going to lose trust and not be able to produce the decision making factors that we need to do,” says Kate Boyle, Head of Data Services at the Policing Digital Service (PDS). 

Discover more about the challenges and priorities of policing in the data sector by watching ‘The future of Data in policing’ vlog with Kate and Aimee.