British policing’s first AI crime reporting tool piloted in Cambridgeshire

British policing’s first AI-powered crime reporting tool is being piloted in Cambridgeshire to “help create more complete reports from the outset”.

The “Citizen Assist” technology, which was designed specifically for policing, uses a natural language AI model to build structured crime reports. This provides citizens with an optional alternative to completing online forms or calling 101 and is currently available for those wishing to report assaults, threats, damage, and theft.

“Citizen Assist” requires people to describe incidents in their own words while answering relevant follow-up questions. Users are then able to review the completed report prior to submission and receive a reference number and information about next steps.

The technology was developed through the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s (NPCC) Digital Public Contact (DPC)  programme, which seeks to modernise how citizens interact with policing.

Simon Megicks, Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire Constabulary and Senior Responsible Officer for DPC, said that “Citizen Assist” was created in the hope of simplifying an often “time consuming and complicated” process.

He said: “This pilot is an exciting opportunity to explore how AI can improve the way people interact with policing, making crime reporting simpler and more intuitive while maintaining the high standards of accuracy, accountability and trust that policing depends on.”

Potential wider rollout of the technology is subject to the outcomes of the pilot, with the NPCC emphasising that “Citizen Assist” has been introduced with appropriate oversight arrangements and is intended to support, rather than replace, human decision-making.

Darryl Preston, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough said: “This pilot provides more opportunities to harness the power of digital services to support policing in preventing crime and disorder, whilst providing the public with increased accessibility in their interactions with the Constabulary when reporting crime.

“Whilst there are many benefits to be gained, I especially hope it will increase accessibility while reducing the need for victims to relive what happened to them. 

“This is our opportunity to shape a national solution.”

This move accompanies growing experimentation with AI tools across British policing, such as the deployment of chatbot “Bobbi Virtual AI” in forces including Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, Thames Valley Police, Humberside Police, Merseyside Police, and South Yorkshire Police.

“Bobbi” uses closed-source information to provide advice and answer questions concerning non-emergency incidents.

Featured Image Credit: Cambridgeshire Constabulary