5G SA could significantly improve the efficiency of various tasks that police officers undertake each day, from communication to case administration.
- New modelling from Vodafone UK reveals how the rollout of 5G Standalone (SA) will improve efficiency in the police service, saving officers a collective 11 million hours a year.
- Individual officers could save around seven days a year, or 17 minutes a day, which could free them up to make one extra daily emergency call out1 – supporting Labour’s commitment to strengthening frontline policing levels across the country.
- To deliver this, the UK needs nationwide 5G – a key pledge of the Labour Government. As part of their proposed merger, Vodafone UK and Three UK promise to deliver a self-funded £11bn investment to roll out 5G SA to 95% of the population by 2030, and 99% by 2034.
New modelling for Vodafone UK by WPI Strategy has revealed that 5G SA could significantly improve the efficiency of various tasks that police officers undertake each day. From communication to case administration, this could save a total of 11 million hours a year, or around seven working days per officer annually. This could be comparable to freeing up 5,400 full-time police officers for on-the-ground operations and community engagement.
Labour’s mission to ‘Take Back Our Streets’ emphasises rebuilding safety across Britain by increasing police numbers and reinforcing frontline policing, ensuring a stronger presence in communities across the country. This comes at a time when increasing uniformed police visibility on streets is the number one priority for UK adults when it comes to improving the police service.2
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper recently reaffirmed this view with a £500 million pledge to bolster neighbourhood policing and implement new technology to reduce administrative burdens, enabling officers to focus more on frontline duties. While the strain on public services cannot be fixed overnight, technology can play a transformative role in freeing officers up from time-intensive day-to-day tasks, which could allow them to return to frontline engagements more quickly.
For example, 5G-enhanced live streaming between police stations and court rooms, through a secure, reliable network, can help officers avoid unnecessary commuting to and from court. Vodafone’s Live Link service, which already helps some officers stay on the beat while remaining accessible remotely, could be rolled out more effectively across the police service if powered by a nationwide 5G network. In turn, freeing up valuable time and resources for direct community engagement.
These efficiencies could save an average police officer around seven days a year or 17 minutes a day – extra time that could be redirected towards swift emergency response deployment. At a community level, that would be the equivalent of an additional eight police officers per 100,000 people – freeing up the equivalent hours of 44 full-time officers for a city like Manchester, or 13 for smaller towns like Slough.
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Statements taken on a phone or laptop can be: uploaded instantly to the system; securely shared with the control room; and stored as evidence for investigations or court use. This enables immediate access to evidence for case reviews, while protecting sensitive information through enhanced network security – reducing the need for victims and vulnerable witnesses to repeatedly recount their experiences.
By supporting quicker, more compassionate case handling, this approach could also help address the discomfort many victims may feel when testifying in open court – which can deter their involvement and contribute to rising non-conviction rates.3
ACC Matt Welsted, West Midlands Police, said: “West Midlands Police is dedicated to delivering outstanding service to its communities. As we modernise, innovate, and look to keep up with changing public needs, mobile connectivity has an ever-increasing part to play. Our partnership with Vodafone is meeting this challenge and helping us work in new ways to meet public expectations and remain efficient.
“With a force of over 12,000 officers and staff, it is important that we are agile and able to flex our approach to serve the public where and when they need us. A 5G Standalone network will only further enhance our digital transformation and keep our officers and staff better connected in the community.”
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Andrea Donà, Chief Network Officer, Vodafone UK, said: “We know our emergency services are facing enormous challenges, and the government is making great strides to support them to ‘Take Back Our Streets’ – specifically by allocating funding to increase frontline policing across the country.
“A nationwide 5G Standalone network, paired with greater use of technology in the police service, could help deliver this mission – substantially reducing time pressures and driving efficiencies to get our officers back in the heart of their community.
“The proposed merger between Vodafone UK and Three UK will deliver an £11bn self-funded infrastructure investment, aimed at delivering 5G Standalone to 95% of the UK population by 2030, and 99% by 2034.”
Vodafone has created an infographic, ‘Stronger connections: Safer Streets’, visualising how 5G SA enables time savings across the police service. All of which results in fewer hours spent on time-consuming tasks, allowing the police to return to communities across the UK more quickly.
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Notes to Editors
1 Both the Metropolitan and Greater Manchester Police Services have 15-minute response targets for Grade 1 incidents defined as urgent/emergencies.
2 The future of policing | Ipsos
3 CPS data summary Quarter 4 2023-2024 | The Crown Prosecution Service
What is 5G Standalone?
Until now, 5G has sat on existing networks and therefore relied on 4G technology. 5G SA does not rely on 4G as it is an end-to-end 5G network, delivering more reliable connectivity, enhanced security, improved battery life and low latency (bufferless) experiences.
Methodology
WPI Strategy modelled the benefits of a standalone 5G network in saving valuable minutes on key police officer tasks. Using current ONS data, the analysis examined how police officers allocate their time during a typical workday. Areas of policing activity which could benefit most from current 5G connectivity were identified. Consistent with previous modelling, a middle-bound 5% time saving benefit was assumed. Using police service data, WPI Strategy was then able to extrapolate these time savings based on an average number of working days per officer. This enabled the time saved to be calculated in terms of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) officers.
