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Industry challenge to find innovative solutions to tackle
drone scourge
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£60,000 funding prize to develop proposal
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Builds on £40m investment to bolster prison security, part of
Plan for Change
A new innovation challenge aimed at combatting the growing threat
of drones to prisons has been launched by the Ministry of Justice
through His Majesty's Government Communications Centre (HMGCC)
Co-Creation.
The Counter-Drone Challenge invites industry to find cutting-edge
solutions to detect drones designed by criminals to evade current
detection methods available on the market. Successful applicants
will receive £60,000 funding to develop proof-of-concept systems
over a 12-week period.
It comes as the number of incidents at prisons involving drones
skyrocketed by over 770% between 2019 and 2023, with the devices
increasingly being used by organised crime groups to smuggle
contraband like drugs and phones into jails.
The Government is already investing £40 million this year to
bolster prison security, including £10 million on anti-drone
measures such as exterior netting and reinforced windows.
Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending,
, said:
We have taken decisive action to combat the scourge of drones in
prisons - investing heavily in physical security and cutting-edge
technology.
This challenge will help us harness innovation to keep staff
safe, disrupt criminal networks and support prisoner
rehabilitation.
Solutions put forward for the challenge must be simple to use and
legally compliant.
This challenge is part of the Ministry of Justice's wider
ambition to engage with industry to source innovative security
solutions.
It follows a July showcase where businesses presented
cutting-edge technologies to ministers, aimed at tackling prison
violence, improving monitoring, and strengthening frontline
safety.
Further information
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For more information about the challenge, please contact
HMGCC.
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HMGCC Co-Creation is a partnership with the Defence, Science
and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), created to deliver a new
bold and innovative way of working with the wider UK science
and technology community.
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It works by sharing OpTech challenges with wide-ranging
networks of academia and industry, then working closely with
them on solutions.
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The idea is about using networks to tap into a huge pool of
expertise, to help wider government keep pace with rapid
advances in technology.
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Businesses showcase
tough justice tech to Government ministers - GOV.UK
