Case study: Bedfordshire Police - mobilising front line officers with the BlackBerry solution

Award category: 6) e-Government excellence: Innovation in strategy - Sponsored by O2
(Delivering innovative strategies which have delivered above-average results in improved services, transformed processes & results, increased effectiveness).

Bedfordshire Police - mobilising front line officers with the BlackBerry solution

Bedfordshire Police

?Up until now we have computerised everything but mobilised nothing,"" Jim Hitch, project manager, Bedfordshire Police.

Sir Ronnie Flanagan, Police Review highlights: 'A major enabler for reducing bureaucracy, making use of generic systems and giving officers more time on the beat is the use of mobile devices such as BlackBerrys.' Bedfordshire Police force is ahead of the curve by implementing a BlackBerry solution that for the first time gives officers the ability to write information in from the field as well as accessing it.

This project was undertaken in complete conjunction with the very people who would be using it ?front line officers. This helped to ensure that the solution was tailored to their needs."

"The use of the BlackBerrys has now enabled officers to access to operation critical applications and systems, whilst out of the station such as remote access to the Police National Computer ( PNC), the forces crime management system , intelligence database, warrants , Police National Legal Database and its custom-built briefings application .

By using BlackBerry smartphones to access critical applications on the move , instead of at their desks, our officers will be able to increase their visibility in the community and improve their operational efficiency .

Jim Hitch estimates that saves each officer half an hour to an hour each day. Part of the success of the implementation has been down to officer contribution. Bedfordshire Police Force spent time with front-fine officers out on the beat, to identify their actual needs and requirements and how they wanted the solution to work to best suit the demands of their jobs on a day to day basis.

The BlackBerry solution was initially piloted before being rolled out to 1,100 frontline officers. The project was completed on time and well within budget."

"Inspector Jim Hitch, project manager, Bedfordshire Police. ?By using BlackBerry to access these applications our officers will be able to increase their visibility in the community, whilst also improving their operational efficiency. Officers no longer need to radio the control room for information or intelligence every time they question someone or see something suspicious. BlackBerry gives officers the power to quickly check crucial details such as identity, vehicle ownership and previous convictions with very little effort and in a secure and robust manner.?

Itpro.co.uk, 27/08/07 Inspector Jim Hitch: ""I liken this to the change from Police boxes to Police radio. That was a huge step and quit expensive and had its doubters who asked why we needed radios. What we're moving to now with these devices is a similar sort of scenario. There are people doubting and asking why we need them but I think that will become clearer and we will depend on these devices more and more and wonder how we ever did without them."""

"The supplier was Research in Motion (RIM) the market leading manufacturer behind the ubiquitous BlackBerry smartphone, operating with 325 carriers and 10.5 million subscribers across the world."

---

Background: e-Government National Awards
The e-Government National Awards 2007 recognise 2007's "best of the best" strategies, achievements, teams and individuals in UK public sector web, ICT & e-Government services. The Awards were presented on 22nd January 2008 by Minister Gillian Merron MP. Prime Minister the Rt Hon Gordon Brown MP joined the awards dinner via video link. Watch the Prime Minister's speech on YouTube at this link

Platinum sponsor was KPMG.
Also sponsors were O2, the Office of Government Commerce, the Planning Portal and Atos Origin.

The Awards were supported by the Government Chief Information Officer (Cabinet Office), the Society of Information Technology Management (Socitm), and SOLACE (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers).