The Police Digital Service (PDS), a Home Office-funded private company tasked with overseeing the development and delivery of the National Police Digital Strategy, has had an eventful few months.
The organisation made headlines in July 2024, after Computer Weekly broke the news that two PDS employees had been arrested on suspicion of fraud, bribery and misconduct in public office by City of London Police.
At the time of writing, the criminal investigation remains ongoing, with a representative for the City of London Police confirming the suspects had been interviewed and released on bail.
It is also known both individuals were – in the wake of the arrests – suspended from work for the PDS while the criminal investigation continued.
The PDS released a statement at the time of the arrests, stating the individuals concerned would be subject to an employee misconduct review, undertaken by an independent HR consultancy, while the organisation and its operations would be subject to a “thorough review” as well.
“The company’s work remains unaffected,” the statement added.
During the intervening weeks, a couple of senior staffers have exited the PDS. The organisation also announced that its annual flagship supplier event, The Police Digital Summit, which was due to take place over several days in September 2024, would be postponed until a “future date” in 2025.
This remains a developing story, but here is everything we know so far about what is going on within the PDS and the implications it could have on the organisation’s future.
What does the Police Digital Service do?
The organisation is tasked with overseeing the development and deployment of the multi-pronged National Policing Digital Strategy, which aims to equip the policing sector with the digital tools needed to fight crime and protect the public.
This work has seen the organisation play a pivotal role in encouraging and enabling police forces across the UK to adopt a cloud-first approach to deploying new software and IT systems, as part of a nationally coordinated migration of policing data and applications to the cloud.
How long has the Police Digital Service been running?
The PDS started life in 2012 as the Police ICT Company, but did not become fully operational until three years later in 2015. Its name changed to the Police Digital Service in 2021.
It was originally set up by the Association of Police Authorities and the Home Office, which – along with the wider policing sector – funds its work. It operates as a private company with no shareholders.
Why were two Police Digital Service employees arrested in July 2024?
All we know so far is that allegations of malpractice were made to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) concerning the behaviour of individuals working for PDS earlier this year.
These allegations were passed on to the City of London Police for review, which subsequently led to the force launching a criminal investigation dubbed Operation Albaston.
Details of Operation Albaston appeared on the UK Police Major Incident Public Reporting Site in early July 2024. The accompanying statement read: “The City of London Police [is] conducting an investigation into alleged criminal conduct of two people employed by the Police Digital Service.”
Details emerged days later that two individuals working for PDS had been suspended from work, after being arrested, interviewed and bailed by the City of London Police for suspected bribery, fraud and misconduct in public office.
How has the PDS responded to the news of the arrests being made public?
The company released a statement confirming the details of the arrests made by City of London Police, and also said the suspects would be subject to an employee misconduct review, carried out by an independent HR consultancy. PDS also said the organisation itself would be placed under review too.
Have the suspects been named?
No identifying details about the names of those under investigation by City of London Police have been released at this time, and no further details about the offences they are accused of committing have been published either.
Have there been any staffing changes at PDS since the arrests?
As reported by Computer Weekly on 17 July 2024, within two weeks of the news of the arrests being made public, PDS CEO Ian Bell stood down and resigned as a director of the company, as confirmed by documents filed with Companies House.
In a statement to Computer Weekly, PDS confirmed Bell’s departure, but said it would be “inappropriate to comment further given the current criminal and HR investigation is ongoing”.
Bell initially joined PDS in 2018, with his appointment being described as a two-year secondment. At the time, he was serving as the vice-chair of the National Police Technology Council, and was also programme director for the policing sector’s national enabling IT programmes.
As confirmed by Computer Weekly on 22 August 2024, the UK government’s former biometrics and surveillance camera commissioner, Tony Eastaugh, stepped in as the PDS’s interim CEO on 19 August 2024.
In a statement, he made no reference to the circumstances that led to his appointment at the PDS, and instead talked about what a “privilege” it was to join the organisation and help continue its “crucial work” to deliver digital, data and technology offerings to the policing sector.
As reported by Computer Weekly on 31 July 2024, another director – in the form of ex-Accenture UK policing and justice lead Allan Fairley – resigned about two weeks after Bell did.
Fairley was a non-executive director, serving on the PDS board, who joined the organisation in June 2024. In a statement to Computer Weekly, PDS said Fairley had stepped down because of the risk of a “perceived conflict of interest”, but no further details were shared at the time.
PDS is part-funded by the Home Office. Has the government department said anything about this developing situation?
Computer Weekly initially contacted the Home Office following news of Bell’s departure, and a press representative said the department is “aware of serious allegations relating to the conduct of two individuals” at PDS, and that it expects a thorough review of how it operates to follow.
“Work is underway to ensure frontline services are not negatively impacted and that public funds are protected,” it continued.
“As a company limited by guarantee, all decisions relating to PDS operation, including appointments and dismissals of key roles, are the responsibility of its board, and ultimately its members.”
