Like many I have been watching the increasing debate about Police Officers having to patrol alone as opposed to being in pairs. During my service, I as a rule only patrolled alone and the general rule of thumb was on nights you were paired off. This was done for officer safety. I still live in the Force area where I was a serving police officer and this does not appear to have changed and obviously still works for this Force, however this does not mean it will work for all Forces and, going further, separate Divisions within the Forces. We have seen articles from the Times and the Daily Mail reporting on the issue and in particular how Facebook is being used to gain support for single patrolling to be looked at more closely. It is interesting how modern technology is being utilised to bring information to many, from a single data point and of course many are Police Officers who are accessing the Facebook page. Officer safety is the main concern and rightly should be, but if Intelligence can be made available to Response Officers, Neighbourhood Officers and other patrolling Officers then it can go a long way to providing them with the ability to carryout an immediate risk assessment before they knock on a door, stop a vehicle or speak to an individual in the street. The key, of course, is getting this intelligence onto a system quickly and efficiently and then making it available equally as efficiently. ABM have these systems available whether it be the ability to add information via mobile technology or Covert Policing methods, it can be collated into the single system. This means that when accessing the intelligence system it is right up to date. An important tool for any Police Officer or PCSO who may be patrolling alone.