France hosted on 15-19 December 2014 a CEPOL seminar on community policing. The activity was organised by the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Police (ENSP
) in Saint-Cyr-Au-Mont-d’Or. 28 participants from EU Member States and Iceland attended lectures from 7 experts: Sebastian Roché, Christophe Merlin, Mathieu Pancrazzi and Emmanuel Magne (France); Bart Pardaens (Belgium); Paul Phillips (UK); and Mona Nordberg (Italy).
All lecturers focused on community policing from a national perspective with regards to legislation, equipment and resources. Participants were explained how to proceed in order to balance security goals and respect of freedom of expression. They could also learn how to set close collaboration with police services and communities in order to better shape security by reducing any risk of urban violence. Working groups were set up to encourage discussion around this topic.
Among the outcomes of the seminar it was stated that:
- developing partnerships with all stakeholders involved in this matter is essential, especially with social workers or mediators since they are a key component for a successful implementation of community policing;
- asking for more involvement of communities is also relevant in order to make community policing positive in its action;
- cooperating and harmonising training are key in strengthening efficiency of any approach to community policing at European level.
After the seminar, it was made clear that CEPOL gained reputation as the most suitable institution to spread knowledge and know-how in this contemporary issue among Member States.
