Role-specific responsibilities
Data ethics — Authorised Professional Practice
Summary
This page outlines the role-specific responsibilities of project leads, data and analytical specialists, and senior leaders in relation to data ethics within policing. Project leads are accountable for decision-making concerning data, ensuring adherence to data ethics principles, and seeking guidance from data specialists. Data and analytical specialists provide expert advice to support ethical data use and maintain oversight of data processes to ensure fairness and effectiveness. Senior leaders are responsible for considering workforce implications and ensuring ethical data processes, including the completion of data protection impact assessments when required. They should seek advice from local independent data ethics advisory boards and legal departments to uphold data ethics principles.
Key principles
- 1Project leads must ensure guidance is sought on data ethics.
- 2Data and analytical specialists should offer support for ethical data practices.
- 3Senior leaders are responsible for workforce implications and oversight of ethical data use.
Defined terms
- Data protection impact assessment (DPIA)
- A process to help identify and minimize the data protection risks of a project.
Full guidance
Guidance on making ethical decisions where data is being collected, stored, shared or used.
This page is from APP, the official source of professional practice for policing.
Project leads, data and analytical specialists, and senior leaders have specific responsibilities, in addition to considering the data ethics principles.
When making decisions on their project, project leads are responsible for collecting, storing, analysing, sharing or using data in line with the data ethics principles. They should ensure that they seek advice and guidance from data specialists and legal advisers on implementing these data principles.
Data and analytical specialists should apply this APP in their day-to-day decision making, including the following:
Providing specialist advice on the application of data ethics principles to project leads, senior leaders and other colleagues. This might include being part of a data analytics working group, in accordance with the Data-driven technologies APP. * Having oversight of processes being used by officers and staff. * Ensuring that data is being used fairly and effectively, in line with their equality duties.
Senior leaders should ensure that the workforce implications associated with the data ethics APP – such as learning, awareness and resource considerations – are taken into account. Please refer to the Data-driven technologies APP.
Senior leaders should ensure that, where necessary, a data protection impact assessment (DPIA) is completed in relation to the processing of data. In addition, senior leaders should ensure that data processes that are being used within their force are ethical. Senior leaders should seek the advice of local independent data ethics advisory boards and their legal departments in order to achieve this.
Do not provide personal information such as your name or email address in the feedback form. Read our privacy policy for more information on how we use this data
What is the reason for your answer?
APP is the authoritative source for UK policing practice and is updated over time. For the current, official version — including any operational detail not reproduced here — go direct.
Read the full APP guidanceSource: College of Policing — Authorised Professional Practice · Crown copyright, licensed under Open Government Licence v3.0. Summary fetched 2026-06-27.