Software developers, WPC Software Limited, based in Keynsham, Bristol, who specialise in providing applications for the emergency services, have just completed work on three different systems for Avon and Somerset Constabulary's Criminal Justice Department.

Inn Keeper enables the Force to administer liquor licences in a quicker and more efficient way than before; keeping track of licensees, premises and owners. The application was originally developed with input from Avon and Somerset Constabulary, and is already operational in Wiltshire and Leicestershire Constabularies.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary has also purchased Shogun, a system aimed at streamlining administration for the firearms licensing department. The system complies with the latest firearms legislation and allows the department to maintain and print the many certificates and permits associated with the acquisition and keeping of firearms and explosives. Shogun is now installed at eighteen police forces in the UK.

Additionally, the Force has installed WPC's Ferret, a newly developed document management system. Initially Ferret will be used to scan in and index thousands of paper records in the firearms licensing department. An interface to Shogun is included, allowing users to automatically view documents linked to a particular person, certificate, club or dealer. Ferret is highly configurable and can easily be used with other applications, such as Inn Keeper, in the future. Avon and Somerset Constabulary is the second force to install Ferret.

Alan Walker, WPC's Managing Director said:

We are very pleased that Avon and Somerset Constabulary has taken on board several of our packages, especially as they are our 'local' police force and we have been talking to them for some time. We hope to continue working together in the future.

Chief Superintendent Alun Howells, responsible for the Avon and Somerset Constabulary's Criminal Justice Department, which includes the Licensing Bureau, said:

It is important for us to have suppliers who keep their promises on time and on budget. WPC has been very professional in two projects inside twelve months.

WPC has been providing consultancy, and designing software for the emergency services since 1988. Forty four of its systems are now in service in police forces around the UK.