NCJL Academic Lead
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Leicester
Department Name: Psychology
Abstract
Across policing and the Home Office there are critical questions that need answering in order to improve criminal justice outcomes. The information exists to answer many of these questions but is hidden within large datasets that need cleaning up, linking and analysing. To date, this has been constrained by a limited access to and understanding of the data, and the capacity of existing in-house resources.
The National Crime and Justice Laboratory (NCJL) aims to maximise the potential of the data currently held within policing and across government to support a data-driven approach to strategic policing, criminal justice system (CJS) and wider Home Office police development and evaluation. Its ambition is to open this data to academics to be able to utilise the untapped capacity and capabilities of academia and industry to provide a cost-effective and innovative response to pressing CJS priority areas and challenges. It will form part of the Home Office's commitment to becoming an innovative, data-driven department by driving the use of innovative data science techniques to prevent and reduce crime.
Overall, the NCJL aims to:
increase the utilisation and value of CJS data
improve data-driven policymaking, leading to improved CJS outcomes
increase the resource capacity to conduct rigorous and robust research
improve analytical capabilities (including methods, tools and expertise)
build partnerships across government, policing and academia
The NCJL Academic Lead will play a pivotal role in the development of the NCJL, working with the Home Office team to develop the roadmap for academic engagement and provide strategic thinking in this space.
The National Crime and Justice Laboratory (NCJL) aims to maximise the potential of the data currently held within policing and across government to support a data-driven approach to strategic policing, criminal justice system (CJS) and wider Home Office police development and evaluation. Its ambition is to open this data to academics to be able to utilise the untapped capacity and capabilities of academia and industry to provide a cost-effective and innovative response to pressing CJS priority areas and challenges. It will form part of the Home Office's commitment to becoming an innovative, data-driven department by driving the use of innovative data science techniques to prevent and reduce crime.
Overall, the NCJL aims to:
increase the utilisation and value of CJS data
improve data-driven policymaking, leading to improved CJS outcomes
increase the resource capacity to conduct rigorous and robust research
improve analytical capabilities (including methods, tools and expertise)
build partnerships across government, policing and academia
The NCJL Academic Lead will play a pivotal role in the development of the NCJL, working with the Home Office team to develop the roadmap for academic engagement and provide strategic thinking in this space.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Matthew Tonkin (Principal Investigator) |
| Description | One of the outcomes from this funding is an academic engagement strategy for the Home Office's National Crime and Justice Laboratory (NCJL). This strategy proposes a range of models/approaches that will enhance the use of academic resources by the NCJL, thereby supporting the laboratory to meet its objectives of utilising data to deliver more evidence-based policy-making that addresses the most pressing strategic and policy questions related to crime prevention. The strategy describes how academic resources (e.g., people, analytical software/code, datasets, research literature and theory) can be used to enhance the delivery of knowledge generation activities within and outside Government that draws on data curated by NCJL. This includes specific models/approaches to academic engagement and the wider infrastructure that is needed to facilitate effective collaboration between academia and Government. |
| Exploitation Route | The academic engagement strategy provides the blueprint/roadmap for developing and implementing more effective mechanisms that will support collaboration between NCJL and academia in the short- (<1 year), medium- (1-5 years) and long-term (5+ years). |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Government Democracy and Justice |
| Description | Academic Advisory Group meetings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | As part of my role as Academic Lead for the National Crime and Justice Laboratory (NCJL), I have coordinated quarterly Academic Advisory Group (AAG) meetings. These meetings are attended by leading academics from across the UK, policymakers, analysts and civil servants within His Majesty's Government (HMG), and criminal justice professionals. Through these meetings, guidance and recommendations have been given to support key pieces of work being undertaken by HMG, including recommendations regarding data analysis, measuring police performance, and data reform. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024,2025 |