  The European Spallation Source (ESS) in Lund, Sweden will become the world's
leading neutron source for the study of materials. The instruments are being
selected from conceptual proposals submitted by groups from around Europe.
These instruments present numerous challenges for detector technology in the
absence of the availability of Helium-3, which is the default choice for
detectors for instruments built until today and due to the extreme rates
expected across the ESS instrument suite. Additionally a new generation of
source requires a new generation of detector technologies to fully exploit the
opportunities that this source provides. The detectors will be sourced from
partners across Europe through numerous in-kind arrangements; a process that is
somewhat novel for the neutron scattering community. This contribution presents
briefly the current status of detectors for the ESS, and outlines the timeline
to completion. For a conjectured instrument suite based upon instruments
recommended for construction, a recently updated snapshot of the current
expected detector requirements is presented. A strategy outline as to how these
requirements might be tackled by novel detector developments is shown. In terms
of future developments for the neutron community, synergies should be sought
with other disciples, as recognized by various recent initiatives in Europe, in
the context of the fundamentally multi-disciplinary nature of detectors. This
strategy has at its basis the in-kind and collaborative partnerships necessary
to be able to produce optimally performant detectors that allow the ESS
instruments to be world-leading. This foresees and encourages a high level of
collaboration and interdependence at its core, and rather than each group being
all-rounders in every technology, the further development of centres of
excellence across Europe for particular technologies and niches.
