Implementation fidelity in a loosely coupled system: the challenges of maintaining consistent ‘problem theory’ and ‘programme theory’ in a multi-force training pilot

This paper considers the organisational and institutional structures involved in the design and delivery of a police training pilot in England in 2015. The training pilot was implemented in six English police forces, and was developed by the College of Policing to improve police use of stop and search powers. Drawing on observations of training sessions and interviews with trainers, trained officers, training designers and national stakeholders in the design process, the paper examines the differences in delivery across forces, and considers key (dis)connections within the communications processes between and within police organisations. The paper examines the institutional and organisational aspects of this attempt to reform police behaviour, and demonstrates the importance of organisational boundary navigation in reform initiatives. This approach challenges predominant conceptualisations of resistant police (sub-)cultures as the main barrier to reform. More specifically, the paper considers clarity in problem theory and programme theory as inherently complex in police training interventions and illuminates the challenges of translating high-level goals into training-room activities. This is particularly the case where multiple forces are involved, each undertaking their own process of translation and interpretation of the training goals and methods. Following an examination of the findings, the implications of these findings for the ways in which police institutions can seek to improve implementation fidelity are explored, as well as the broader challenges for maintaining consistent standards of practice across multiple organisational boundaries.