Police Digital Academy boosts investigation training in the North West

More than 1100 police officers and members of police staff benefitted from innovative digital investigation training during the opening fortnight of the Police Digital Academy’s training sessions.

Cumbria Police reported that the Police Digital Academy is a partnership between five north west police forces which focuses on providing officers and staff the best evidence-based digital investigation training.

Short, virtual sessions have been running since the start of February as part of a five-week programme in which officers and staff learn from subject matter experts on key areas of digital investigation. The training is available for staff across Cumbria, Cheshire, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside.

“Technology continues to change at pace, which means the threats and opportunities that changing technology provides are also developing quickly. No longer can digital investigation be viewed as a specialist area alone, we must mainstream digital investigation skills across our frontline.”

Assistant Chief Constable Jonny Blackwell, Cumbria Constabulary.

Training areas being developed by the Police Digital Academy are a result of evidence-based research undertaken by the academy’s Digital Research Hub into a range of themes, including domestic abuse investigations. The research also ensures the skills being delivered are what officers and staff require to do their job.

“One of the key principles of the academy is that training is agile and responsive, as opposed to traditional courses which can take years to roll out. We cannot afford to fall behind technology. Therefore, our training will move at pace to meet the challenges of modern policing.”

Assistant Chief Constable Jonny Blackwell, Cumbria Constabulary.

The training sessions continue throughout February and into March allowing even more staff to benefit from this new approach, with a virtual library available long term.