Research Organisation Research Ethics Committee launched Written on Thursday, September 25, 2025 On 1 July 2025, the Netherlands Police Academy instituted an official Research Ethics Committee. The Committee advises researchers on how to conduct their scientific research at the Academy in an ethically sound manner. There are two sectors at the Police Academy that engage in research: Higher Police Education, and Knowledge and Research. ‘This is a true milestone’, comments Edith Stolp, Secretary of the Committee. ‘The Committee is there to help the organization and the researchers. And to raise their awareness of how best to proceed with their research, from an ethical point of view, by taking certain measures in advance in designing their approach.’ ‘Researchers were constantly reinventing the wheel. We’re going to enhance and standardise the process. The Committee will help with that and ensure the researchers are facilitated in this process. We want to stimulate a learning effect in the organisation’. In the first instance, the Committee will serve the researchers and professors in the Knowledge and Research sector. At a later point student-researchers from Higher Police Education will also be able to consult the Committee. Particularly within Knowledge and Research, the need for an Ethics Committee specifically for the Police Academy had long been felt. Researchers want to publish in scientific journals, or to submit grant applications. Often an ethical review is one of the requirements. In such cases a collegial review, as was carried out before, is not sufficient. Quality standards for research ‘Setting up the Committee is also necessary to comply with the Netherlands Code of Conduct for Research Integrity (Nationale Gedragscode Wetenschappelijke Integriteit, NGWI)’, Edith continues. ‘A university of applied sciences usually has a Research Ethics Committee. The Police Academy is a university of applied sciences, but with a special status. On the one hand, it is part of the police organisation. On the other hand, it is an autonomous administrative authority, with its own statutory task that is the responsibility of the Director.’ ‘Conducting research within the police context has its own points to consider. For instance, our researchers are police officials who have taken an oath or made a solemn affirmation. That position as a police official may give a researcher access to certain data. But you can’t simply use these data as the basis for research. In these sorts of situations, we couldn’t imitate the way other universities of applied sciences do things. We had to make our own way.’ ‘A large portion of the research is commissioned by the Netherlands Police. Sometimes the researchers and and police professionals carry it out together. That is great for the impact of the research but can sometimes lead to dilemmas. The police organisation may intervene too much in the research design, or may exert too much pressure. As a researcher, you want to conduct research without the influence of others. The Ethics Committee can help safeguard this independence by advising the parties involved.’ Composition of the Research Ethics Committee In addition to Edith Stolp, the Secretary, the Research Ethics Committee consists of: Anne Bonvanie (Associate Professor at the Ethics & Technology Research Group, Hogeschool Saxion). Guus Meershoek (Professor in Police History at the Netherlands Police Academy, specialised in information use and police integrity). Jurjen Jansen (Professor in Digital Resilience at the Netherlands Police Academy). Teun-Pieter de Snoo (Lecturer/Researcher and manager of the research project Professional Resilience at the Netherlands Police Academy). Evelien van Ginneken (Privacy Officer at the Netherlands Police Academy). The Committee is assisted by Michelle Visser (Programme Coordinator at the Human and Police Organisation Knowledge Centre). Enhancing ethical practice Hamit Karakus, the Netherlands Police’s national lead on ethics: ‘I am happy that the Ethics Committee is now complete. And that we have been able to affiliate a good group of researchers to our Police Academy. The independent advice from this committee will boost the quality of our scientific research. This is important for our professionalism – particularly in today’s times, when transparency is more important than ever.’ ‘Our Ethics Committee shows that the police organisation is taking serious steps forward in enhancing our ethical conduct in scientific research, so that we can continue to trust our moral compass in a responsible manner.’