Cumbria Constabulary is continuing to stay at the forefront of UK policing in its use of digital technology to serve its communities – after investment by the county’s Police and Crime Commissioner Peter McCall allowed it to link up with a leading US-based cloud native community safety and technology company, Mark43.

The force is entering into a new partnership with Mark43, which develops and supplies law enforcement systems for more than 135 agencies throughout the US and Australia, including working with agencies in New South Wales, Washington D.C., Boston, Seattle, San Antonio and Atlanta.

This partnership will provide a new data system which will be used by officers and staff in everyday policing, including on the frontline, as officers aim to solve and deter crime and keep people in Cumbria safe.

Key aspects of this new system should reduce duplication, red tape and time officers spend doing deskwork and on computers – meaning officers can spend more time tackling crime, responding to the public and being out-and-about in the community.

Mark43 brings innovative, resilient, and best-in-class technology for first responders.

The data system is cloud-based, which means it is constantly updated to ensure that applications are always improving, this represents the latest move for the constabulary to remain at the cutting-edge in digital technology.

With 24/7 dedicated customer support, Mark43 provides steady assistance to address customer needs and questions as they arise.

Staff from Mark43 have spent time with staff and officers from the force over the last year to find out how they work and how the systems would best serve the aims of solving and deterring crime and keeping people safe.

They went out with response officers, into briefings and visited police stations and sites.

There were also dozens of meetings to get to the bottom of what works best and what will be best for the future of policing.

Chief Constable Michelle Skeer said: “Our investment in new technology has one key aim – making sure we provide the best possible policing service to the people of Cumbria and those who work and visit our county.

“Improving the digital tools and systems with which our officers and staff do their jobs means they are able to work smarter and more efficiently, giving them more opportunity to be out and visible in our communities, which we know people want.

“Ultimately, this partnership will help our officers do their jobs better for the benefit of tackling and deterring crime and keeping the communities of Cumbria safe.”

Assistant Chief Constable Jonathan Blackwell said: “The system Mark43 will be providing us with will help us continually improve for the benefit of our workforce and the public.

“Our officers and staff use digital systems throughout their duties and having them as streamlined and free of duplication as possible means more officers out on the beat or spending time keeping people safe.

“This new technology is aimed at helping operational policing – the officers on the frontline keeping our communities safe.

“We’re delighted to be working with Mark43 on this exciting partnership.”

Cumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall, said: “Mark43 is an innovative system which I expect will assist with reducing paperwork, improve essential information flow for officers and give them more time to be back in our communities.

“The system will of course need some time to settle and become fully effective, but it demonstrates yet again that Cumbria are right at the leading edge in policing technology.

“As PCC I know that police visibility is really important to the public and I am keen to do all we can to see effective policing in our neighbourhoods, using technology to enable this is key.

“The face of policing is always changing, and more crime occurs online and behind closed doors; this means we need more officers dealing with these crimes appropriately. Mark43 gives our officers more opportunity to walk the streets and be seen.

“I look forward to working with Mark43 and I will be monitoring to see the actual effect and positive impact for our communities supporting the work of Cumbria Constabulary.”

“We are thrilled to launch this partnership with Cumbria to support their mission of employing modern technology to help keep residents safe,” said Matt Polega, co-founder and Head of Communications and Public Policy at Mark43.

“With this implementation, Mark43 is bringing proven technology that will undoubtedly save time, avoid duplication and equip first responders with the modern technology solution they deserve.”