Blackpool Unlimited Logo
✕
  • Home
  • Business Support
    • Blackpool Growth Business Academy
    • Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy
    • Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone
    • Office Services
      • EC2 Office Services
      • Meeting Rooms
      • Hybrid Meetings with EC²
      • Office Space
      • Virtual Office Service
      • Virtual Tour
    • Property Locator
    • How do I get started?
    • Partners
  • About
  • News
  • Events
  • Climate Change
  • Contact
Sign up for Blackpool Business News & Events
Are you looking to grow your business?
How close to net zero is your business?
Join our newsletter
Blackpool Unlimited Logo
Blackpool Growth Business Academy Logo
BLACKPOOL NET ZERO BUSINESS ACADEMY LOGO
✕
  • Home
  • Business Support
    • Blackpool Growth Business Academy
    • Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy
    • Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone
    • Office Services
      • EC2 Office Services
      • Meeting Rooms
      • Hybrid Meetings with EC²
      • Office Space
      • Virtual Office Service
      • Virtual Tour
    • Property Locator
    • How do I get started?
    • Partners
  • About
  • News
  • Events
  • Climate Change
  • Contact
 

“The best facilities I’ve used in the UK”

 

 

Quiet. Spacious. Lots of natural light and an excellent reception team: they’re features valued by lots of the people who use Blackpool Enterprise Centre’s meeting rooms. But for Dr Keith Ashcroft, those features matter even more…

Dr Keith Ashcroft is a consultant investigative psychologist and founder and director of the Centre for Forensic Neuroscience. His expertise supports the work of the legal profession, the UK Prison Service and police forces worldwide, for whom he has consulted on matters relating to threat assessment, violence risk assessment, violence prevention, and corporate security issues for the past two decades.

In 2015, Keith took the opportunity to study polygraph (you’ll probably know it by its more common – although incorrect – name of ‘lie detector’) in London. “I was very sceptical at the time,” he explains. “There weren’t very many respected academics who were involved with it.”

Keith’s (and the scientific community’s) view of the science has changed in the intervening years and Keith has developed his own techniques in accordance with the British Psychological Society's ethics. “A lot of my work now involves the polygraph.”

His polygraph work is wide ranging. “It might centre on marital conflict. It could be a conflict between an employee and an employer. There may be issues between rival companies or a question of drugs use in sport. It could be absolutely anything where there's uncertainty as to whether people are being truthful. That’s where I can assist. I’m also an occasional consultant for TV and movie productions where polygraph use is part of the storyline. I’ll help them ensure they’re doing it in an authentic way.”


Detecting memories

“We need to forget the idea of lie detection,” Keith says, explaining the value of the polygraph. “It's all about memory detection, and it has to be an action memory – something a person has done. The effort of hiding a memory increases the cognitive load on the brain. That’s when you get physiological reactions that we measure using polygraphs.

“If I’m working for the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, for example, investigating a sports personality suspected of using a performance enhancing drug, the polygraph won’t tell me if they’re ‘lying’. But it will tell me their physiological reaction to their recollection of a memory. That can be used as an indicator of a person’s credibility.”


Based in Blackpool

Keith travels widely because polygraph work needs to be carried out in person, so he operates from a number of bases as far afield as Canada, Bulgaria and Switzerland. In the North West he uses offices in Liverpool and Manchester. In Blackpool, he works from the Enterprise Centre.

“Everyone knows Blackpool, don’t they?” he says. “It’s a landmark, well-connected and easy to get to. It’s a definite advantage that the Enterprise Centre is so close to Blackpool South railway station.”

Keith is extremely enthusiastic about the Enterprise Centre’s facilities and people. “To be honest, they’re the best I've ever used in the whole of the UK. The rooms are perfect for interviews. They all have panoramic views, there's lots of space and light, it’s air conditioned and quiet. This things are important because it helps put interviewees a little more at ease. They don’t feel oppressed by the space.

“You've also got exceptionally good reception staff able to manage the people who come in. Some of these people will be in the midst of some form of conflict so the reception team need a good ear, to be empathetic and make people feel comfortable while they’re waiting for their test or perhaps waiting for a spouse or partner to complete a test.

“Hiring their meeting rooms is also extremely good value.”


Global and local

Keith’s work spans the globe, but there’s good reason for Blackpool businesses to be aware of his services. “I never know what the next phone call will bring – it could be a polygraph for an intellectual property dispute, a work disciplinary meeting, employee theft, recruitment, a relationship issue. In terms of the Blackpool business community, I think it's an untapped resource for any organisation wanting to use polygraph as a widely accepted investigational aid.”


To explore ways Keith could help your organisation, contact him now.
To find the right meeting space for your business talk to EC2 from Blackpool Unlimited.

 

Related posts

Angela Kershaw, Head of Business Growth at Blackpool Council
November 27, 2023

Angela Kershaw Appointed as Head of Business Growth at Blackpool Council


Read more
Maisie Axon
November 10, 2023

Adler & Allan Appointed as Sustainability Specialists to Deliver Blackpool’s Net Zero Business Academy


Read more
October 31, 2023

Two Blackpool business academies launched to promote sustainable growth


Read more
October 30, 2023

Blackpool Unlimited Collaborates with Local Companies to Deliver Funded Support for Business Growth


Read more

Growth Academy

Net Zero Academy

Office Services

  • Office Space
  • Meeting Rooms
  • Hybrid Meetings with EC²
  • Virtual Office Space
  • Virtual Tour

Supporting You

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Accessibility Policy
BLACKPOOL COUNCIL LOGO
© 2023 Blackpool Unlimited. All Rights Reserved. Website built by Happy Creative
      ✕

      Please note no cash grants are available.

      Blackpool Growth Business Academy

      Start ups

       

      Please note no cash grants are available.

      Business Support Enquiry

      Meeting Room Enquiry

      We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
      Cookie settingsACCEPT
      Manage consent

      Privacy Overview

      This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
      Necessary
      Always Enabled
      Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
      Functional
      Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
      Performance
      Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
      Analytics
      Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
      Advertisement
      Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
      Others
      Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
      SAVE & ACCEPT