Collaboration, consultation and strategic consequences in a North-West Constabulary

O'Connor, K

Abstract

This thesis examines processes and practicalities of police collaboration with
partner agencies and consultation with the public. It considers police and partner
agency perspectives in detail, highlighting practical and strategic outcomes of
collaboration and consultation.
The police service in England and Wales along with most of the public sector,
has been driven by central government to collaborate with other agencies and
consult with the public for the last three decades, especially since 1979 under the
influence of New Public Management. The formal obligation to do so has
increased considerably since the late 1990s. Since the Labour administration
came into power in 1997, collaboration and consultation have become core
ingredients of many government led policy initiatives. This in turn has increased
the emphasis placed upon these two processes within the police. The most recent
and significant initiatives affecting collaboration and consultation will be
considered within this thesis as will the police and partner representatives'
outlook on these initiatives.
Funded as anESRC (CASE) studentship, the research was conducted in close
collaboration and with support from a Constabulary in the North-West of
England. This created an important opportunity to undertake in-depth
observational qualitative research on the police. This qualitative case study
approach utilises police and collaborative agency respondents' narratives, gained
in the main through 35 semi-structured interviews. The use of rich narrative data illuminates the intricate practices, process and perceptions of the police and their
partners. It is argued that while there is much written on 'outcomes' and 'what
works', there exists a lack of qualitative analytical academic research detailing
the perceptions of those involved to highlight the hidden processes, practicalities,
and consequences surrounding the introduction of government policies
stipulating collaboration and consultation.

Citation

O'Connor, K. Collaboration, consultation and strategic consequences in a North-West Constabulary. (Thesis). Salford : University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 3, 2012
• Award Date: Jan 1, 2005