11293 report 19 - CAIN - University of Ulster

A. Chapter SummaryBackgroundThe Independent Commission recognised training as the cornerstone for creating, and reinforcing,an effective and modern police service capable of achieving acceptance and sustaining communitysupport from the citizens of Northern Ireland. Fifty-one (51) of the recommendations relatedirectly or indirectly to training.In addition, the Independent Commission recognised that securing a fundamental and lastingchange to the police service centred on the ability of the organisation to sustain momentum andbuild the capacity for effective change; identified timely, relevant and effective training arefundamental to preparing police officers and civilian staff to deal with the operational and legalcomplexities of policing in a modern era; and reinforced the concept of dedicated fundingstrategies for training, as well as an organisational commitment to continuous investment ofresources in the training enterprise.As Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) has rightly pointed out 1 , training isfundamental to any organisation and of the utmost importance in ensuring that employees havethe skills and knowledge to perform the tasks for which they were recruited. On a daily basis,police officers on the front-line are confronted with a multitude of complex issues, many requiringsplit-second decisions that lead to second guessing by the community, interest or advocacy groupsand others. The need to take the right decisions in the face of unanticipated events requires ongoingtraining. In addition to efforts to better understand the existing and historically diversecultures in Northern Ireland, the Police Service has recognised the changing diversity of thecommunity and is attempting to ensure that training is provided to support a better understandingof the culture, ethos and, at times, the language of these new members of the Northern Irelandcommunity.Progress and AccomplishmentsThe evolving training enterprise has had to meet major challenges including six Heads of Trainingin seven years as well as the displacement of police college personnel for a number ofadministrative reasons including promotions, transfers and retirements. The implications of theserealities include changes in style and direction to course content. Despite these impediments, thePolice College and the Staff of the Training, Education and Development enterprise (TED) haveworked hard and effectively to meet the recommendations of the Independent Commission’sreport. Innovative learning and development skills sets have been introduced, along with thesuccessful implementation of state-of-the-art information and communication technology, achallenge in and of itself. The progress was made possible, in most cases, by a dedicated team thatrecognised that cutting edge learning and development is vital to the future of the Police Service.An extensive list of accomplishments, including numerous accredited programmes and links with awide array of learning institutions, is contained throughout the training recommendationsummaries.1661HMIC ‘Managing Learning,A Study of Police Training’, April 1999.