Predictive policing research gets a boost from £3m grant

An Imperial mathematician is leading a new five-year program to test and improve predictive policing and tackle other challenges for future cities. Predictive policing involves using maths and statistics to predict times and places that serious crimes will occur based on historical crime data in a given area, allowing police to efficiently allocate resources. With more powerful models we can start to predict not just where, but when, and what type of crime is likely to occur. Professor Girolami A trial in Los Angeles was so successful at predicting and preventing crime that UK authorities are investigating its use. Professor Mark Girolami, from the Department of Mathematics at Imperial, is leading a consortium, called Inference, Computation and Numerics for Insights into Cities ( ICONIC ), that brings together researchers and policing partners. ICONIC has just been given a £3m grant from the EPSRC. Hayley Dunning spoke to Professor Girolami about improving predictive policing and how the maths used could translate to other aspects of city life in the future.