Droman Director Paddy Tomkins works with SEI, Police Scotland and DfID to deliver EUPST Training at St Leonard’s Hall, University Of Edinburgh, Scotland. 17-22 January 2016

SEI in collaboration with Police Scotland, the Stabilisation Unit and the Scottish Institute for Policing Research delivered a five-day course: ‘Policing with Communities in Fragile and Conflict Affected States’ © for the European Union Police Services Training (EUPST II) programme.

The course brought together serving police officers drawn from across the European Union, the Middle East and Africa who will deploy to international policing missions.

The overall objective of the ‘Policing with Communities Course’ was to increase participant knowledge of the connected issues and build the capabilities, understanding and skills required for effectively policing with different communities in hostile and post-conflict situations. It considered practical and theoretical elements from a range of UK and international approaches to and methods of policing diverse communities. The course conveners draw on their own experiences and expertise of policing in FCAS and brought in additional speakers from a range of academic and operational backgrounds.

After attending the course reception on 21 January, the Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs, Mr Paul Wheelhouse noted: “It was a pleasure to welcome participants in the EUPST ‘Policing With Communities’ Course to Scotland. Scotland has a great tradition of international co-operation and a deep commitment to sharing knowledge and experience with our partners in Europe and across the globe. Nowhere is this more relevant that in the fields of policing and community safety, where so many common issues and challenges are faced by communities in different countries. I wish all participants in the ‘Policing With Communities’ course well, salute their courage and professionalism, which too often we take for granted, and trust that their learning will assist them in their service to communities across the EU and further afield.”