UK Begins to Grade Cops Using AI

The United Kingdom is trialing a proof of concept for a machine-learning algorithm that can grade and detect issues within police forces early enough before they affect the public. More like an “early-warning predictor tool,” per the report. 

Until now, the Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), which is responsible for inspecting police forces of England and Wales, have relied on the “PEEL” assessments to ensure the police are performing at their best. 

UK’s PEEL Framework Has a Timeliness Problem

PEEL stands for Police Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Legitimacy. In essence, it measures how well the police are able to solve crimes and keep people safe. It also helps check whether the police are using their resources wisely and if they have the trust and confidence of the public. 

The framework has been used to grade the 43 police forces in England and Wales since 2014. In one case, HMICFRS found the Staffordshire Police as ‘inadequate’ in its ability to respond to the public, investigate crime and manage offenders and suspects, through the PEEL assessment.

Though effective, the PEEL model, however, has a timeliness problem. 

The HMICFRS inspectors carry out these assessments by reviewing data, observing officers at work, and even talking to the public and police staff. Based on their findings, they then assign grades to the forces. 

The procedure entails that the HMICFRS only reacts to the problem rather than being proactive. Consequently, when a serious problem is found within a police force, the effect may have spread or impacted the public. 

HMICFRS Will Grade Cops Using AI

The HMICFRS, together with the Accelerated Capability Environment (ACE), worked with The London Data Company to develop the machine learning algorithm, which Jacquie Hayes, HMICFRS insight portfolio director, said comes to “a very similar conclusion” as their inspection process, but it happens much sooner, and so makes communities safer. 

The AI algorithm was built in about eight weeks. It uses publicly available data from 999 calls, the Home Office, and the Office for National Statistics. The tool accurately predicted the PEEL grade for a force in around 60% of cases, according to the report.

As it stands, AI is seemingly going to become a core part of the grading and inspection procedures for police forces in England and Wales going forward. 

At the moment, the AI algorithm is only trained on one of the PEEL assessment questions: how well forces investigate crime. However, the HMICFRS plans to expand the tool to other PEEL questions and deploy it into its live systems and overall inspection process over the next 18 months.

“We are now exploring what more we can do with the data that we collect, as well as what other PEEL questions we could expand this to,” said Hayes. 

Hayes affirmed the inception of the tool doesn’t mean that the inspection teams will be replaced. However, they plan to do a lot of things with it, application-wise, including expanding it to Fire and rescue departments. 

“Fire and rescue is also on the list – but it’s a very long list because we would like to do a lot of things with it,” Hayes added. “You can’t replace our inspection teams with artificial intelligence, but we can certainly think about what this means for how we inspect, and I think this will have an implication on that.”

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