Core modules
Year 1
Police, Policing and Security (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to illustrate the basic concepts and principles of police accountability, performance measurement and legitimacy. It will explore the challenges of policing transnational organised crime as well as those more locally associated with maintaining the careful balance between the need to keep order during public protest and retaining basic rights of freedom of speech and assembly. The module will examine the use of criminal intelligence methods and intelligence databases to support the prevention and detection of crime as well as considering management strategies, leadership and human resource management. The module will illustrate the disparaging effects of police corruption and the need for strategies to maintain the highest ethical standards in police work.
Crime Science (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of the basic concepts and principles of existing scientific approaches and broader techniques in the prevention, investigation and detection of crime. The module will explore ways in which the nature of crime can be informed by science and police investigative approaches. It will investigate how science can support detection and contribute towards crime prevention and it will also consider how scientific methods are applied to crime reduction.
The Law and Politics of Policing (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of the basic concepts and principles relating to the police role, within legal, political and social contexts. It also aims to present you with an understanding of the various organisational forms that policing takes within the extended police family, different functions and models of policing, and the legitimacy of police use of powers in different policing contexts.
The Criminal Justice System and How to Tell What Works (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of the basic concepts and principles relative to policing and the criminal justice system in England and Wales. The module is designed to enable you to gain an understanding of the position and role of the police in the wider context of criminal investigation and offender management and to explore the organisations which form the criminal justice system in the United Kingdom.
Police Practice, Policy and Procedures 1 (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of basic police practices, policies and procedures in England and Wales. It is the first of three modules which embed within them components enabling the student to attain the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP). The module will focus on legislation and those aspects of the law that are more commonly used by the police, such as the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and more generally explore legal procedures. The module will consider the classification of some offences within law and the defences attached to particular offences. Fundamental aspects of a police officer’s duty will be introduced, such as evidence gathering, search, arrest and detention.
Year 2
Psychology and the Criminal Justice System (20 credits)
This module aims to give you an introductory understanding of forensic psychology and its impact on the criminal justice system. It will explore how psychology has changed criminal justice procedures, impacted on police practice and given a better understanding of people involved in the criminal justice system such as: perpetrators, victims and witnesses. Special attention will be paid to vulnerable people with lectures on addiction and mental health. Additionally, this module will explore the psychology of the court process and the prison system utilising psychology to understand trial proceedings, the impact of psychological processes on sentencing and the application of psychology to the treatment of offenders.
Evidence Based Community Policing (20 credits)
The overall aim of the module is to develop an understanding of neighbourhood and community policing. By examining the key features of each and considering arguments for and against the adoption of these models of policing. The module aims to develop your awareness of the qualities required of a professional neighbourhood police officer. The module also aims to develop your ability to identify professional and academic literature related to neighbourhood and community policing and to engage with issues related to this area of study in an independent and autonomous manner. This module embeds a volunteering element, allowing you to gain valuable experience of working within relevant criminal justice or third sector organisations.
Criminal Investigation (20 credits)
The main aims of the module are to develop your knowledge and understanding of police investigations in the UK and the law underpinning these investigations. The module requires you to become acquainted with the history, structure and function of investigative work in the UK as well as concepts and procedures and current practices relating to police investigations of volume, series and major crimes. In addition you will acquire a knowledge and understanding of the current law in relation to police investigative powers, safeguards for suspects, and selected criminal offences.
Year 3
Psychology of Serious and Prolific Offending (20 credits)
The module aims to explore specialist areas of research and application within criminal and forensic psychology, particularly in relation to serious and prolific offending behaviours and ways to address them. The module will critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of the featured research and literature and in doing so facilitate your development of both subject specific and transferable skills appropriate to the level of study.
Mental Health and the Criminal Justice System (20 credits)
This module provides you an understanding of the impact of mental health conditions on an individual’s ability to manage involvement with the criminal justice system; how mentally ill people need specialist treatment when they come into contact with the criminal justice system as victims/witnesses/offenders; how the role and value of psychiatry and psychology helps in delivering such treatment; and how psychology has changed criminal justice procedures, impacting on police practice and giving a better understanding of people with mental health conditions.
Individual Study (40 credits)
The aim of the Individual Study module is to develop your ability to research and analyse policing in some depth, and construct a well reasoned argument based on your findings. In so doing the course aims to provide you with a degree of autonomy in your learning by allowing an opportunity to pursue in some depth, a study of a topic aligned to policing.
For your final core module, you are asked to choose one of the below.
Police Reform and the Future of Policing (20 credits)
This module aims to provide the rationale behind police reform in the United Kingdom. It will critically examine the recent changes that have occurred in both Northern Ireland and Scotland. The module will review calls on the UK police service to respond to the dual challenge of increasing governmental/public demands for improvements in police efficiency and effectiveness in the context of decreasing real time increases in financial resources.
Police Practice, Policy and Procedures 3 (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of police practices, policies and procedures in England and Wales. It is the third of three modules, which embed within them components enabling the student to attain the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP). This module will focus on legislation and relevant policing practices and policies relating to Personal and Public safety, Planned and Emergency police procedures and gathering and handling of police Intelligence and information, it will include an exploration of Counter Terrorism, the principles Critical Incident management and Management of Police Information (MoPI). Fundamental aspects of policing skills in relation to these aspects of Policing will be explored.
Likely optional modules
Year 1
In Year 1 you will have an option of studying a Language as part of your degree, or a module Crime and Disorder in Context (20 credits), which examines the key principles and concepts underpinning crime and its causes., as well as the central theories and methodologies encountered within the social sciences, and criminology in particular.
Year 2
Police Practice, Policy and Procedures 2 (20 credits)
The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of police practices, policies and procedures in England and Wales. It is the second of three modules, which embed within them components enabling you to attain the Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP). This module will focus on legislation and relevant policing practices and policies relating to Volume Crime Investigation, providing an initial response to a policing incidents and Public Protection. The module will include an introduction to the principles of the College of Policing Professionalising Investigation Programme (PIP) further exploration of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and Human Rights Legislation. The module will consider the classification of offences relating to Public protection, how a police response is delivered and how evidence is gathered in order to bring offenders to Justice. Fundamental aspects of a police officer’s duty will be explored such as evidence gathering, search, case building and Interviewing witnesses and suspects.
Evidence Relating to Criminal Investigation (20 credits)
The main aims of the module are to develop your knowledge and understanding of evidential issues and how these relate to police investigations in the UK. The module requires students to become acquainted with legislation and current case law. In addition you will acquire a knowledge and understanding of the legal process both pre and posttrial.
Decision Making Theory and Practice in Policing (20 credits)
The module aims to develop decision making and psychological theory understandings in policing by consideration of nontechnical skills which are underpinned by empirical evidence and science. Theoretical principles to be addressed in the module are decision making models, situational awareness, personal and collective decision making, leadership and team functioning, environmental constraints and stressors. The module will consider the application of critical incident understanding in different contexts practically, e.g., murder investigation, road death, arson, safeguarding children, missing persons and firearms use. Learning in safe place, and in the absence of practical error, is the theme of the module.
Year 3
Investigating Rape and Domestic Abuse (20 credits)
This module critically examines the police investigation of rape (as well as other serious sexual assaults), and domestic abuse. It enhances your knowledge in relation to previous studies of criminal investigation, by developing your ability to critically analyse all aspects of the police response to rape. Similarly the same critical analysis will take place in relation to the police response to domestic abuse. It is no surprise that the police response to both of these types of crimes has attracted much criticism in the past. This module will analyse to what extent the police have improved, and discuss how they conduct their modern investigations in the wider criminal justice setting, and in partnership with other agencies. All content will be discussed against the backdrop of research relating to sexual and violent offending, case studies and case law. Some criminal justice practitioners will be invited to speak in order to add a practical element to the module.
Major Crime Investigation (20 credits)
This module critically examines the police investigation of major crimes, particularly in the form of homicide. It brings together your knowledge of policing and general crime investigation and develops your ability to critically analyse all aspects of major crime investigative practice. Drawing upon published research and high profile miscarriages of justice, as well as current and newsworthy major crime investigations, you will be required to understand the processes, procedures and rationale that sit behind such important police investigations. There will also be critical discussion of how this process can be sustained in the austerity paradigm, and the ongoing considerations regarding privatisation of certain police functions.
Policing Public Order and Crowd Psychology (20 credits)
This module aims to bring together research, theory and practice to give you an understanding of the relationship between social disorder in society, public order policing, and crowd psychology. The course will consider dominant theories which underpin models of crowd psychology (e.g., LeBon, Allport, SIT & SCT). Taking an intergroup perspective, crowd psychology and police perspectives of disorder will be deconstructed to illustrate the psychological dynamics which create the conditions necessary for collective violence. Key case studies will draw on social disorder in different contexts (e.g., protests and demonstrations, and domestic and international football events). The benefit in uniting empirical research with practical policing principles will be explored in addressing the emergence of policing principles of Dynamic Risk Assessment and Graded Tactical Deployment as empirically informed good practice principles.
"The Policing Suite at Christ Church has allowed me to pick and create my own degree with the different speciality pathways. I’m able to study modules that I’m interested in, and specialise in key areas according to what I want my future to be. Despite being called ‘Policing’ many students find their interest turning to other law and criminal justice bodies throughout the course, so in no way is this course a straight pathway to just joining the police force."