Dr Nikki D’Souza reports on an innovative collaboration event.

The Women in Policing Conference was a very successful two-day event held at the Durham Conference Centre, funded by the N8 PRP and the Leadership and Human Resource Department within Northumbria University.  It was held as part of the work under the North East Policing Research Network (NEPRN). 

Dr Nikki D Souza, Northumbria University

The NEPRN was set up by Dr Nikki D’Souza (Northumbria University) and Dr Donna Marie Brown (Durham University) as a partnership between the 5 local universities in the NE and their coterminous police forces and PCC offices to identify and pursue research based on identified policing priorities.  All research is co-produced between academics and participating police forces with a focus on both warranted officers and civilian police staff.  The gender and policing workstream is one of the established research pathways.  The workstream members decided to run a conference on the 16^th – 17^th May 2024 with a view to establishing research projects which foster an inclusive workplace environment for all.

The first day was co-hosted by Dr Nikki D’Souza (Northumbria Uni) and Superintendent Kelly Martin (Durham Police). It focussed on professional policing inputs, with the aims being:

• To focus on the recruitment, retention and progression of women police officers and police staff using an intersectional lens
• To identify the most pressing issues facing women in police which would benefit from research evidence in relation to career progression and retention
• To identify and share best practice between forces and strengthen collaborations between force leads and academic leads to inform policies and practice

ACO Anita Grant, Sussex Police

Approximately 60 delegates from across the country, including police officers, police staff, police crime commissioners and academics, attended the first day. The inclusive participatory ethos of the conference was highlighted by Mrs Nancy Radford from the outset through an ice-breaker activity.  Special thanks to the fabulous keynote speakers:  Chief Constable Vanessa Jardine (Northumbria Police), Assistant Chief Constable Anita Grant (Sussex Police), Detective Sergeant Keri Alldritt (GMP) and Assistant Chief Constable Tonya Antonis (Durham Police).  The interactive Q&A panel (many thanks to Joy Allen (Durham OPCC), Matt Storey (Cleveland OPCC), Jenny Fleming (University of Southampton) and Fiona Eldridge (College of Policing) and breakout groups around pre-identified themes were well received.  Academics took notes of the key themes emerging from the event so that they could be used to inform the discussion the following day. The first day ended with a networking dinner at the Cosy Club in Durham.

DS Keri Alldritt, Greater Manchester Police

The academics leading on the development of research projects met on the second day.  Dr Donna Marie Brown (Durham Uni) and Dr Nikki D’Souza (Northumbria Uni) chaired the session, consolidating the themes arising from the first day and identifying potential research projects and funding sources. This event was attended by ten academics and the team identified two possible funders (Nuffield and local participating OPCC) to whom they would like to apply for funding. Professor Jenny Fleming (University of Southampton) will explore the recruitment and retention of female police staff and officers and Professor Gosia Ciesielska (Sheffield Hallam University) will focus on research around the progression and promotion of female officers and police staff. The academic team will develop these applications, in collaboration with police partners.

Feedback from delegates was that this was an important and inspiring event, with a view that a repeat event in 18 months’ time would be beneficial to revisit the themes with a view to deciphering early impact arising from the two research pathways.  Many thanks to our funders who enabled this work to commence.

For more information about the Conference, follow-up work, and NEPRN, please contact Dr Nikki D’Souza at  nikki.dsouza@northumbria.ac.uk. 

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