Roger Grimshaw – författare

In the 1980s there existed wide and often acrimonious disagreement over the purposes and objectives of police organizations, the ways in which their activities were structured, and their relations with the wider society. Interpreting policework requires a rounded conception of policing, based on both a thorough critique of the main theoretical trends in police sociology, and close familiarity with actual patterns of policing, on the streets, in the stations, and inside the police headquarters where key policies are formulated.

Originally published in 1987, the achievement of this book is that it combines rigorous theoretical analysis with a wealth of descriptive material drawn from first-hand observation of policing and decision making at all levels, and thus relates sociological theory to practice and political debate at the time. The introduction provides a careful analysis of central theoretical and political strands in police sociology, and proposes a new general conception of policework. The authors go on to provide vivid illustrations of this conception from the worlds of uniformed unit beat patrols and resident beat officers, and from the fora in which policy for operational practice is considered. A final section draws the wider lessons of these concrete analyses for sociological theory and for our understanding of past policy shifts from one form of beatwork to another, and spells out the radical implications of the study for the political debate on the future of policing.

Interpreting Policework thus had relevance to students and researchers in police studies, sociology, public policy and the law at the time and will still be of historical interest today. The authors are experienced researchers, practised in investigating a wide range of criminological and social control issues.

In the 1980s there existed wide and often acrimonious disagreement over the purposes and objectives of police organizations, the ways in which their activities were structured, and their relations with the wider society. Interpreting policework requires a rounded conception of policing, based on both a thorough critique of the main theoretical trends in police sociology, and close familiarity with actual patterns of policing, on the streets, in the stations, and inside the police headquarters where key policies are formulated.

Originally published in 1987, the achievement of this book is that it combines rigorous theoretical analysis with a wealth of descriptive material drawn from first-hand observation of policing and decision making at all levels, and thus relates sociological theory to practice and political debate at the time. The introduction provides a careful analysis of central theoretical and political strands in police sociology, and proposes a new general conception of policework. The authors go on to provide vivid illustrations of this conception from the worlds of uniformed unit beat patrols and resident beat officers, and from the fora in which policy for operational practice is considered. A final section draws the wider lessons of these concrete analyses for sociological theory and for our understanding of past policy shifts from one form of beatwork to another, and spells out the radical implications of the study for the political debate on the future of policing.

Interpreting Policework thus had relevance to students and researchers in police studies, sociology, public policy and the law at the time and will still be of historical interest today. The authors are experienced researchers, practised in investigating a wide range of criminological and social control issues.

In the early 1980s, the question of how far the police should be accountable for their actions had become extremely vexed. The impending new Police Bill, the Scarman report and the pressure from many sides for an independent complaints machinery hinged on this issue, and a careful review of the problem was badly needed.

The Cobden Trust commissioned Tony Jefferson and Roger Grimshaw to research into the matter, and Controlling the Constable, originally published in 1984, is the result of their findings. The authors examine closely the concept of constabulary independence at the time. They look at the relevant legal history and at how this independence was used by chief constables from day to day. On this basis, they then re-assess two of the most controversial policing operations of modern times – Brixton prior to the 1981 Riots and Southall on 23 April 1979, a day which resulted in hundreds of arrests and the death of Blair Peach.

They conclude that the concept embodies a fundamental incoherence: the reliance on the law to guide the chief constable, and the failure of the law to do so. They show that all the current proposals for reform, which entailed greater emphasis on the democratic system as a guide, could result in similar incoherence. A new approach to the conflict between legal authority and democratic authority was urgently needed. Controlling the Constable points the way to the only satisfactory resolution – and this included a concept of justice which was coherent and which could serve as a real guide for the chief constable in using his discretion. The book was controversial, but quite clear on one point: however independent any new complaints procedure may become, and however much committees were ‘consulted’ by chief constables via ‘Scarman-type’ liaison committees, until the problem was tackled on this fundamental level, there could be no significant change in police behaviour.

In the early 1980s, the question of how far the police should be accountable for their actions had become extremely vexed. The impending new Police Bill, the Scarman report and the pressure from many sides for an independent complaints machinery hinged on this issue, and a careful review of the problem was badly needed.

The Cobden Trust commissioned Tony Jefferson and Roger Grimshaw to research into the matter, and Controlling the Constable, originally published in 1984, is the result of their findings. The authors examine closely the concept of constabulary independence at the time. They look at the relevant legal history and at how this independence was used by chief constables from day to day. On this basis, they then re-assess two of the most controversial policing operations of modern times – Brixton prior to the 1981 Riots and Southall on 23 April 1979, a day which resulted in hundreds of arrests and the death of Blair Peach.

They conclude that the concept embodies a fundamental incoherence: the reliance on the law to guide the chief constable, and the failure of the law to do so. They show that all the current proposals for reform, which entailed greater emphasis on the democratic system as a guide, could result in similar incoherence. A new approach to the conflict between legal authority and democratic authority was urgently needed. Controlling the Constable points the way to the only satisfactory resolution – and this included a concept of justice which was coherent and which could serve as a real guide for the chief constable in using his discretion. The book was controversial, but quite clear on one point: however independent any new complaints procedure may become, and however much committees were ‘consulted’ by chief constables via ‘Scarman-type’ liaison committees, until the problem was tackled on this fundamental level, there could be no significant change in police behaviour.