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National IT system for police intelligence

Bichard Inquiry · The Bichard Inquiry Report · Issued 22 June 2004 · Addressed to: Home Office

Government responseHome Office: Accepted (Dec 2004)

DeliveryHome Office says in progress (May 2007)

Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry

●Inquiry recommendation

A national IT system for England and Wales to support police intelligence should be introduced as a matter of urgency. The Home Office should take the lead and report by December 2004 with clear targets for implementation.

Bichard Inquiry, The Bichard Inquiry Report · 22 Jun 2004 Source PDF →

Published evidence summary

AI-generated evidence summary

The Inquiry recommended the urgent introduction of a national police intelligence system. In May 2007, the Home Office stated that it remained committed to delivering a police intelligence store linking local records with the Police National Computer (PNC) (Home Office, May 2007). The National Audit Office found in September 2021 that the Police National Database (PND) was introduced in 2011 following the Inquiry (Gareth Davies, Sep 2021). It also reported that the department removed the PND from a wider programme in December 2020 to maintain it as a standalone system until 2031 (Gareth Davies, Sep 2021).

Sources

Home Office, May 2007
Gareth Davies, Sep 2021
Gareth Davies, Sep 2021

AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 5 Oct 2026.

Report-level response context

The Government accepted all 31 recommendations collectively: the Home Secretary's written statement of 11 January 2005 records that "All 31 recommendations were accepted by the Government when the Inquiry reported in June 2004". No document states an acceptance decision for any single recommendation. The response shown against each recommendation is the Home Office's answer to it in the first progress report, sent to Sir Michael Bichard on 22 December 2004 and placed in the Library of the House on 11 January 2005. The Government then reported against the recommendations three more times, in November 2005, May 2006 and May 2007; the updates shown are taken from those reports.

Government response

●Home Office · Accepted · 22 Dec 2004

Words of: Home Office, Bichard Inquiry Recommendations: Progress Report, 22 December 2004

There has been a comprehensive buy-in across all 43 police forces in England and Wales to the IMPACT (Information Management, Prioritisation, Analysis, Co-ordination and Tasking) programme, which will provide a national information-sharing system for police intelligence purposes and a modernisation of the central information services currently provided by the Police National Computer (PNC). The programme management arrangements and funding are now in place to deliver that system nationwide. The new capabilities will be delivered in stages from 2005 and the programme will be completed by 2007.

Response document: Bichard Inquiry Recommendations: Progress Report

Delivery

●Home Office says in progress · 22 May 2007

The Home Office and NPIA remain fully committed to meeting Recommendation 1 through the delivery of a comprehensive store of police intelligence and other operational information, containing and linking locally held data with data currently held on the PNC and other national systems.

From: Bichard Inquiry Recommendations: Fourth Progress Report

What other bodies have found

In their own words. These do not change the delivery statement above.

●National Audit Office · 8 Sep 2021

The PND was introduced in 2011 following the Bichard Inquiry in 2004, which criticised police information-sharing and recommended that a national intelligence-sharing system be created.

From: The National Law Enforcement Data Programme, Gareth Davies, Comptroller and Auditor General

Earlier findings (1)

●National Audit Office · 8 Sep 2021

In December 2020, the Department removed the PND from the scope of the NLEDS programme and it will now be maintained as a standalone system until 2031.

From: The National Law Enforcement Data Programme, Gareth Davies, Comptroller and Auditor General

How this page is built

The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.