ac3.4: evaluate the effectiveness of agencies in achieving social control - police

Question 1

how do the police achieve social control?

Answer 1

• arrest offenders
• protect the public
• stop and search
• patrol the streets
• provide security

Question 2

how are the police effective?

Answer 2

• they protect the public
• lots of specialist forces which help prevent crime
• give testimonial evidence, provide info on an investigation - this helps to gain a conviction
• available 24/7
• when they patrol, they provide a presence to deter crime

Question 3

statistics - effective

Answer 3

• police to receive up to £843 million next year
• the number of officers has increased by 5.1% on march 2022, this is the highest since comparable records began

Question 4

cases - effective

Answer 4

leanne tiernan = the police used a dog collar and DNA to identify her killer

Question 5

quotations - effective

Answer 5

government = ‘police to get funding boost to cut crime and keep public safe’

Question 6

how are the police ineffective?

Answer 6

• they abuse their power/position of trust, e.g. the sarah everard case
• budget cuts - less officers available which limits the help they can give, and cases are dropped
• discrimination such as racism, e.g. the cases of stephen lawrence and george floyd

Question 7

statistics - ineffective

Answer 7

• at march 2023, white officers made up 91.6% of the workforce

Question 8

cases - ineffective

Answer 8

• stephen lawrence = he was given no first aid, the police didn’t give first aid, accused of institutional racism
• colin stagg = used entrapment to force a confession
• sarah everard = officer used his power to rape and kill her
• hillsborough = they didn’t open the gates and blamed the public, saying they broke in
• puppy farm murderer = the police had confiscated his gun but gave it back despite claims of attempted murder
• derek bentley = they misinterpreted his words and sentenced him to death

Question 9

quotations - ineffective

Answer 9

• bbc = ‘ stephen lawrence mother says MET police still unaccountable, 30 years after murder’
• guardian = ‘thousands of uk police working away from frontline crime amid funding crisis’