North London Combats Crime with Mobile Working GIS Solution

The North London Strategic Alliance (NLSA), has chosen ESRIs ArcPad Geographical Information System (GIS) to pilot mobile working technology to combat criminal activities such as graffiti, fly-tipping, anti-social behaviour and vehicle abandonment and to improve the environmental conditions that create the opportunity for these activities.The mobile GIS solution will enable borough officials, such as enforcement officers, neighbourhood wardens and police community support officers, to report crime location and incident details in real-time using GPS and GPRS technology, allowing them to activate immediate corrective action. The solution aims to improve council services by addressing the issues in an effective and pro-active manner, improving the quality of life for the general public. The solution is part of NLSAs ODPM-funded, e-government programme aimed at assisting the reduction of crime through e-innovative solutions. NLSA members, Enfield (who is the lead authority), Haringey, Barnet and Waltham Forest are piloting the solution. The handheld units used within the solution are loaded with Ordnance Survey mapping data. They are equipped with GPS, which allows the user to capture accurate co-ordinates for the incident and GPRS, which allows the information to be uploaded back to the central database in real time. ESRI (UK) is hosting the database, which is spatially enabled through ESRIs database engine, ArcSDE. The information will be available to the local authorities employees on a secure website, also hosted by ESRI (UK) and served via ArcIMS, ESRIs Internet Map Server. This facility provides economies of scale for the participating boroughs and utilises existing council technology infrastructure to access the management information. The new system ensures that the database is accurately maintained, directly by the public-facing services, freeing employees from excessive administration and allowing them to organise action and rectify the problem more quickly. The single, centralised database will also enable the NLSA to analyse captured data to identify trends and hotspots across participating boroughs and jointly address the issues. The pilot will run through April to June with over 40 units across the four boroughs and is generating high interest within other service agencies in the boroughs and nationally.