Who they are

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) is the Law Enforcement Agency (LEA) with responsibility for the delivery of policing in Northern Ireland.

The PSNI was established in 2001 as part of the recommendations of the Good Friday Agreement and is the successor to Royal Ulster Constabulary GC. PSNI headquarters is based in Belfast, with 6730 police officers and 2090 support staff.

For the Police Service of Northern Ireland, keeping people safe is what we do; Policing with the Community is how we do it. Policing with the Community is about understanding and responding to the human impact of policing. It is about creating real participation between the police and the community – a partnership in which policing reflects and responds to the community’s needs.

The central role of the PSNI is to help build a safe, confident and peaceful Northern Ireland. Working in partnership, policing prevents crime, detects offenders and protects the most vulnerable in society. We are committed to enhancing community safety and building public confidence in policing.

How they are organised

The operational functions of the PSNI are delivered through 11 District Policing Commands. Crime Operations branch which delivers on Special Operations, Reactive and Organised Crime, Serious Crime investigations and Intelligence management.  Operational Support branch which has responsibility for Tactical Support, Armed Response, Close Protection and Roads Policing teams. These functions are supported by Corporate Communications, Corporate Governance, Discipline and Anti-Corruption, Finance, Human Resources, Legal Services and Legacy and Justice.

Their expertise

The PSNI has expertise in a wide range of LEA activities and is recognised as a global leader in the delivery of:

• Cyber Crime investigation and Online Safety
• Policing with the Community
• Public order and crowd management
• Counterterrorism investigation
• Intelligence management
• Emergency planning and disaster management
• Human Rights focused policing

The PSNI is one of the most scrutinised Law Enforcement Agencies in the world, operating within a robust accountability framework that ensures policing delivery of the high standard.

The PSNI strives to be at the forefront of research and innovation regarding policing and security, ensuring as an organisation they are continually learning, adapting and improving. One of the many ways in which the PSNI achieves this objective is the organisations participation and delivery of various European funded research and development projects under Horizon 2020, at present, PSNI is involved in nine projects, including the coordination of the TENSOR project.

The subject matter of these projects is wide-ranging and varied. Subject areas covered include:

• Online Terrorist Activity Recognition
• Use of Social Media in Natural Disasters and Emergency Situations
• Home Made Explosives (HME’s) & Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
• Border Surveillance against crime and terrorism
• CBRNe Threats, including response and investigation

The PSNI’s specialist areas of expertise are:

• End user requirements
• Stakeholder consultation and engagement
• Ethical, legal and societal requirements
• End-user validation
• Dissemination and exploitation activities
• Project management and co-ordination

Role in the project

PSNI participate in 4 work packages beginning with the end user recruitment process, supporting the collection of end-user needs and editing the IN-PREP Crisis Management Handbook. They will lead the IN-PREP terrorist attack demonstration and provide support on all other exercises and demonstrations of the project.