Philip Edwards
Lecturer in Policing
Institute of Arts and Humanities
School of Law
email: p.edwards@worc.ac.uk
Phil retired as a Detective Inspector for policing after 30 years’ service. During this time, he performed roles in Uniform and CID in the Metropolitan Police, Hertfordshire, and in West Mercia Police. His vast experience took him across a wide range of roles both Uniform and CID where he journeyed through some of the most historical and challenging periods for the organisation. During the latter part of his career, Phil worked in the Public Protection arena where he led investigations into very serious offences against woman and children particularly, leading to long sentences and sometime life imprisonment for the perpetrators. Phil was commended on a number of occasions for his leadership and dedication.
After leaving the police, Phil has worked in various police services up and down the country as a consultant and trainer, improving performance and developing officers through experiential learning. He has lectured in Den Haag and Rwanda with the Public Prosecutors, worked with the UN in Uganda, and trained staff working in the hostile territories of South Sudan.
Phil was then employed as Airfield Manager where he managed the transition of the Airfields safety management system now used up and down the UK as a template for Airfield safety.
Phil returned to the policing world in 2018 where he worked for Thames Valley Police on their Direct Entry Detective Training course and initial police training before arriving in Higher Education in 2019. He lectured in Forensic Criminal and Professional Policing at the University of Gloucestershire for four years, with a particular emphasis on investigative practices. Phil received two ‘Wow’ awards in 2020, ‘Most Inspiring Lecturer Award’ from the Students Union in 2021, and the Student Academic Award in 2023.
Phil is current doing a Masters by Research where he is researching police legitimacy, focusing on those working within and alongside the criminal justice system. This may become a PhD piece in the very near future. He is also writing about the plight of those awaiting outcomes of police investigations from the standpoint of a defendant.
Phil is very passionate about the future of policing and is looking forward to working at the University of Worcester to continue his teaching of potential police officers of the future.