Policing guidance | College of Policing

Authorised professional practice (APP)

Operational guidance on how to deal with different types of crime or incident – from first response through to investigation, legal issues and public protection

Go to authorised professional practice (APP)

Read operational guidelines

Conducting effective investigations

Guidelines on how to ensure investigations are conducted effectively, regardless of offence type or complexity.

Effective supervision

Guidelines to support the wellbeing, learning and performance of everyone in the police service through effective supervision

Obtaining initial accounts

How to get good quality information from witnesses and victims at the early, first-response stage – before formal interview

Conflict management

Information and practical support on officer and staff safety, diffusing situations and non-physical ways to deal with conflict, aggression and violence

Neighbourhood policing

How to understand communities, build trust and work together with communities, supported by private, public and voluntary sector partners

Vulnerability-related risk

How to recognise and respond to risks when working with vulnerable people

Anti-social behaviour powers

Information about legislation and policing powers to tackle anti-social behaviour.

Go to the toolkit

Codes of practice

PNC and LEDS

Principles for the ethical and professional processing of data and information managed through the Police National Computer (PNC) and the Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS).

Vetting

Principles and ethical standards for police vetting.

Armed policing and police use of less lethal weapons

Principles for firearms, specialist munitions and less lethal weapons by police.

Information and records management

Principles for police information and records management.

Code of Ethics

Principles and standards of professional behaviour for the policing profession of England and Wales.

Guides and evidence briefings

Drug crimes

Evidence briefing about the best strategies and interventions to reduce drug offences

Knife crime problem-solving guide

Guide for tackling local knife crime, building on our knife crime evidence briefing. This sets out strengths and limitations of each type of action, how they work and where they work best

Restorative justice

Evidence briefing about the process of repairing harm caused by criminal behaviour, including its effectiveness and how restorative justice can be used by police

Homicide problem-solving guide

Problem-solving guide for homicide prevention, including scanning, analysis, response and assessment

Neighbourhood crime

Evidence briefing about situational crime prevention interventions to reduce neighbourhood crime

Right Care Right Person (RCRP) toolkit

How to implement the RCRP approach in your force and work effectively with partner agencies to respond to mental health incidents

Knife crime evidence briefing

Broad approaches that are effective in tackling knife crime

Reducing violence against women and girls in public spaces

Evidence briefing with strategies, tactics and general approaches to reduce violence against women and girls in public spaces

Serious violence hot spots policing guide

Seven-step guide for reducing serious violence using hot spots policing, including planning and implementation

Violence against women and girls toolkit

Toolkit to support police officers and staff to protect women and girls. Includes existing offences that police responders can consider and links to protective tools and resources