Aims: This research aims to investigate the need for, and produce guidance on, a healthcare equivalence standard in police custody. At present there is no clear expectation of the standard of care that should be provided in police custody, except that Healthcare Professionals (HCPs) should perform their practices in line with their own professional norms and values. This is in opposition to other elements of the criminal justice estate (for instance prisons), where a clear standard is in place, and detainees are expected to be treated in the same ways and to the same standards as persons at liberty. Given that an equivalence standard is established in other parts of the criminal justice system, why is the same not applied in police custody? To this end, this study aims to:

1. Develop new knowledge and understandings around: the treatment of those detained with mental illness and the ways it may vary due to detainees’ personal characteristics; personal health data usage during police custody; and multiagency collaboration in the Emergency Services
2. Conduct an analysis of risk assessment practices, including implementation of electronic risk assessment tools
3. Produce a comprehensive policy brief outlining the easiest way to implement an equivalence standard into police custody healthcare