The Scottish Policing Academic Centre of Excellence (SPACE) brings together interdisciplinary academic expertise in three key themes: safety, prevention, and analytics; underpinned by capability in public confidence and ethics. SPACE builds on the Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR) model, bringing 17 years of expertise in supporting research and knowledge exchange in a multi-disciplinary collaboration between universities and policing partners. SPACE aims to enhance policing policy and practice by harnessing high-quality academic evidence and innovating new approaches, focusing on improving personal safety, building prevention and maximising use of analytics in a manner that inspires confidence and meets high ethical standards.

ARIs and related specialisms

Analytics

• Data and AI ethics
• Data linkage
• Data quality (including synthetic data)
• Data science, analytics and computational analysis

Building and maintaining public trust

• Public perceptions of police use of technology, AI and data

Crime prevention

• Child sexual exploitation and abuse
• Cyber, online and virtual reality safety
• Drugs
• Safe spaces
• Terrorism and extremism
• Violence against women and girls and gender-based violence
• Violent crime

Personal safety

• Officer and staff wellbeing
• Organisational culture and leadership
• Risk and trauma in police settings