ABSTRACT
The most positive indication of the government’s commitment to police efficiency is Home Office Circular 114, issued in November 1983. The emphasis on proper ‘consultation’ as an integral part of good management consultation both with the community policed and junior ranks within the service itself - emerges as a recurring theme of the current efficiency initiative. The problems of monitoring patrol activity are substantial: in fact it is more than a little ironic that such a central plank of police activity should constitute probably the most complex activity to manage efficiently. A major pitfall that confounds informed management judgement in the police service - particularly about patrol work, but also about many other aspects of police activity - is that few can actually claim to have reliable information about how resources are presently deployed.
