How the programme works
Millie Tanner | Temporary Inspector, Thames Valley Police
Take the lead
Your commitment to progress is what makes you leadership material
Alongside a network of driven individuals from forces across the country, you’ll be exposed to the innovative learning techniques that develop disruptive leaders, equipping you to tackle current and future policing challenges in a frontline leadership role.
The programme is challenging and the onus is on you to take individual responsibility to address these challenges. But, you’ll be supported through input from the peer group and your Progression and Development Officer, as well as online content focused on personal wellbeing and supporting the wellbeing of others.
Programme learning modules
The programme covers three core areas:
Navigating the promotion process
We equip you with the essential knowledge and understanding of how to navigate the promotion process.
You’ll work to understand your force-specific promotion process with support from your Police Now Progression and Development Officer. You’ll have opportunities to take part in skills practice sessions, coming away with the foundational knowledge you’ll need to be successful in the promotion process.
This includes a solid understanding of the National Policing Promotion Framework and the Competency & Values Framework, and how to practically structure and apply this.
Improving operational competence
We build on your existing operational experience with the knowledge and tools you’ll need to demonstrate the competencies needed for promotion. You’ll be supported by your Progression and Development Officer to actively seek out opportunities to fill any operational gaps that you identify through your skills and knowledge gap analysis.
The programme will embed important skills such as:
- – Building a growth mindset.
- – Reflective practice.
- – How to influence others.
You’ll have time to practise these skills and get targeted feedback to build your confidence and competence.
Preparing for leadership
We focus on developing a culture of leadership and innovation to tackle long-standing policing challenges in communities challenged by crime.
You’ll develop your own authentic leadership style, with practical takeaways to help you implement your learning from day one on the job and beyond. You’ll develop skills that will support you in utilising your network and leading change within your force and community.
The programme is designed to create a sense of insurgency and urgency. We’ll help inspire and renew your drive to continue your own development and progress to lead change in policing.
Programme outline
The programme is a fully participative experience. Structured sessions are active and dynamic with a significant amount of practical scenarios woven throughout. You’ll often work in small peer groups to address the challenging and complex issues that you will face along the promotion journey and as a leader in the current and future policing climate.
The programme consists of five dynamic, in-person, taught days, with independent and online learning between each taught day designed to consolidate and implement your learning, with support from your dedicated Progression and Development Officer throughout.
Everything you receive or encounter as part of the programme will have an explicit developmental purpose, allowing you to drive a consistent personal experience across each element of the programme.
Photographs from a recent taught day.
Programme timeline
Induction event
Dynamic and purposeful, the induction event will focus on creating a sense of urgency for development, delivered through an immersive and high-energy learning experience. Emphasising and reflecting on previous activities during the application process, this event will help the promotion process come-to-life.
Pre-Programme Learning
The first of five online learning modules. This should take you around an hour to complete.
It covers:
- An introduction to Police Now and the Frontline Leadership Programme
- Your promotion timeline
- Understanding the Competency and Values Framework (CVF)
- Your role as a leader
- Participants can track their own development through the FLP workbook that will be used for all activities throughout the programme.
Taught day one
This is all about preparing you for your journey towards promotion and starting to explore your own leadership style.
During the day you will also learn skills around presenting and delivering briefings, culminating in a group presentation on a topic linked to the themes of the Frontline Leadership Programme.
By the end you will:
- Build a network of contacts that you can develop in the future
- Be aware of different leadership styles, which you prefer, and how you can utilise them.
- Understand techniques that can help you progress through the National Police Promotion Framework (NPPF).
- Be able to plan, conduct, and evaluate a briefing or presentation.
Online learning: understanding yourself
This module is all about delving inside yourself to understand your motivations and values.
Once you have done this you can explore ways in which you can seamlessly interact with others, and techniques to manage conflicts with others.
Taught day two
This is all about discovering how you will operate as a leader and giving you a chance to practice the skills that you learned on Taught Day 1 for in preparation for your promotion process.
By the end you will:
- Be able to assess threat, harm and risk factors.
- Be aware of your behavioural style and how your behaviour can affect others.
- Be aware of models for time and project management.
- Have demonstrated your preparation for the police promotion framework in a mock interview.
Online learning: coaching & mentoring
You will learn to understand what it means to be a coach and mentor, what you can do to ensure that your staff feel supported and methods that you can use to help them through their own personal development.
This input will also include guidance on how to hold one-to-one meetings and performance reviews.
Taught day three
This will focus on putting together a skillset that will enable you to be an outstanding leader. The day is aimed at managing your team.
By the end you will:
- Develop techniques for maintaining the wellbeing and resilience of you and your team members.
- Understand how you can support people who are neurodivergent.
- Understand your responsibilities for promoting diversity and inclusion.
- Understand the importance of giving and receiving feedback.
Online learning: dealing with conflict
This module is all about identifying and resolving conflict, understanding when conflict may occur, and exploring the reasons why.
You will refresh your de-escalation techniques and skills for having difficult conversations with your team members.
Taught day four
You will be involved in Police Now’s large-scale, interactive, table-top exercise Operation Ducibus.
During the day you will work with your colleagues to take on the role of a sergeant and will undertake a series of tasks revolving around planning and implementing your response to unfolding events.
Operation Ducibus features a fully interactive audio/visual experience that will immerse you in the scenario and give you chance to develop your leadership and management skills.
By the end you will:
- Understand the processes involved in leading the response to critical incidents.
- Be able to rationalise your deployment of resources.
- Demonstrate leadership during police investigations.
- Be able to apply techniques for delivering briefings.
Online learning: community relations
This module explores some of the history of police community relations.
You will learn to evaluate and act on potential issues before they escalate and how to remain informed on community relations to be a better public servant.
Taught day five
This is all about planning for the future and how you can have a positive impact on policing culture when you are promoted.
By the end you will:
- Have developed skills for leading cultural change.
- Understand the importance of maintaining standards and professionalism as a sergeant.
- Understand the importance of Evidence Based Policing.
- Reflect on the course and what you have learned and achieved.
- At the end of Taught Day 5 you will be presented with your certificate of completion for the Frontline Leadership Programme.
- You will also find out more about how Police Now can continue to support you throughout your career and how you can continue to utilise the networks you have established during the programme.
Digital information sessions
Join an information session if you are considering applying for the Frontline Leadership Programme and would like to find out more.
Our digital information sessions last 30 minutes and are hosted on Microsoft Teams. The session includes information on the following:
- Introduction to Police Now
- Overview of the Frontline Leadership Programme
- The recruitment process
- Hints and tips for a success
Information sessions run when we open for applications.
