Contemporary challenges to police management in England and Wales: developing strategies for effective service delivery

This article seeks to explore the application of a social market approach to the police service. It considers the extent to which a social market structure can be applied to a service which is ultimately dependent on public support for achieving its objectives. Its seeks to challenge assumptions concerning core and ancillary duties and the strict division which the Home Office has attempted to apply to them. It also contrasts public perceptions of what the police should do with those objectives identified by both the government and Audit Commission for the police service.