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Increasing efficiency for police officers
Police forces can now increase efficiency and reduce the burden of administration on officers on the beat with the launch of ‘Form Patrol’ from police communications specialist HeliMedia.
Form Patrol is a mobile data application which replaces traditional bulky forms and eliminates manual paper processes. Designed for local police officers, it enables them to complete any form (such as Stop and Search or Fixed Penalty Notice) on any handheld device, including the O2 XDA.
It allows officers to collect information accurately and efficiently and then link this data electronically to the force’s central information and ticket processing systems, using the most efficient and cost-effective means possible. This means officers can spend more time on the streets, becoming more visible, flexible and responsive.
“Not only can Form Patrol be used to reduce police time spent on paperwork, freeing up time for actual policing, but it also ensures greater accuracy in the recording of information by individual officers due to safeguards built into the system,” explains Simon Hall, managing director of HeliMedia Ltd.
The launch of Form Patrol comes at a time when the Home Office has clearly outlined its determination to reduce bureaucracy across UK police forces , and it follows a trial, sponsored by Home Office Police Standards Unit, which involved over 100 officers across five forces. The trial, named ‘Project Roman’, included a Beta version of Form Patrol. (see Notes to Editors for more information).
After questioning officers from the five forces during the pilot project, an independent report from the PA Consulting Group found that:
“Most users felt the electronic forms made the stop and encounter process more efficient. This was by reducing the time spent completing a form through improved data accuracy and through perceived reduction in double keying once the form is submitted to a force system.”
The Prime Minister has also recently emphasized the need to “cut down unnecessary red tape” in modern policing and recognise the role of technology in achieving this, to include “mobile data devices which cut down the need for officers to return to the station to fill out paperwork; and technology which does both – helps fight crime and reduce paperwork – like number plate recognition and head cameras.”
Form Patrol is designed to integrate with a police force’s existing processes and can work alongside other applications, allowing officers to collect information accurately and efficiently and then link this data electronically to the force’s central information and ticket processing systems.
