Dissertation Proposal
Research Proposal
Identify a research topic
‘Northampton Borough Council and Northamptonshire Police are to slash almost 50 PCSOs and could leave vulnerable members of the public “stranded” The cuts, if passed, would also have a “knock-on” effect on other parts of society’ (Northampton Chronicle and Echo 2012).
In my local town of Northampton, Police Community Support Officers are to have their funding cut by the County Council and the Police service themselves will be asked to pay for them. This reduction could lead to the reduction or abolition of all PCSOs in the area.
The aim of this research proposal is to investigate weather PCSOs are still valued in society and particularly in view of the Government funding cut backs across the UK, are they worth the Police or Councils paying for them?
There has already been a considerable amount of research conducted on the role of PCSOs in the community, but limited research has been conducted on whether or not they are effective, and if they provide taxpayers with value for money. Therefore, I propose that my dissertation will expand on these issues, and focus, on the ‘cost effectiveness’ of PCSOs and their value to society.
In order to contextualise this research, I will focus on the history of policing and the introduction of PCSOs, the current role of PCSOs, and whether attitudes have changed to them over time. I will try to find out if it is rational to have them, have they had an impact on crime figures over time? Are they valuable enough to keep and what are the other alternatives for the police and for society.
The lack of previous research on this topic makes it a worthy area of study. A deeper understanding of this subject would enable tax payers to find out more about what their money is spent on.
This research would have a political interest, as the Government is cutting funding for public services and this has led to cuts in funding for PCSOs. Evidence about their effectiveness could show
Identify a research topic
‘Northampton Borough Council and Northamptonshire Police are to slash almost 50 PCSOs and could leave vulnerable members of the public “stranded” The cuts, if passed, would also have a “knock-on” effect on other parts of society’ (Northampton Chronicle and Echo 2012).
In my local town of Northampton, Police Community Support Officers are to have their funding cut by the County Council and the Police service themselves will be asked to pay for them. This reduction could lead to the reduction or abolition of all PCSOs in the area.
The aim of this research proposal is to investigate weather PCSOs are still valued in society and particularly in view of the Government funding cut backs across the UK, are they worth the Police or Councils paying for them?
There has already been a considerable amount of research conducted on the role of PCSOs in the community, but limited research has been conducted on whether or not they are effective, and if they provide taxpayers with value for money. Therefore, I propose that my dissertation will expand on these issues, and focus, on the ‘cost effectiveness’ of PCSOs and their value to society.
In order to contextualise this research, I will focus on the history of policing and the introduction of PCSOs, the current role of PCSOs, and whether attitudes have changed to them over time. I will try to find out if it is rational to have them, have they had an impact on crime figures over time? Are they valuable enough to keep and what are the other alternatives for the police and for society.
The lack of previous research on this topic makes it a worthy area of study. A deeper understanding of this subject would enable tax payers to find out more about what their money is spent on.
This research would have a political interest, as the Government is cutting funding for public services and this has led to cuts in funding for PCSOs. Evidence about their effectiveness could show
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