| Durham Constabulary | |
|---|---|
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| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1839; 186 years ago (1839) |
| Employees | 2,910[1] |
| Volunteers | 126[1] |
| Annual budget | £112.3 million[1] |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | County Durham, England |
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| Map ofpolice area | |
| Size | 862 sq. mi. (2,232 km2) |
| Population | 595,308 |
| Legal jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Constituting instrument | |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Overseen by | |
| Headquarters | Aykley Heads, Durham |
| Police officers |
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| PCSOs | 131[2] |
| Police and Crime Commissioner responsible | |
| Agency executive |
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| Basic Command Units |
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| Website | |
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Durham Constabulary is theterritorial police force responsible for policing the council areas ofCounty Durham andDarlington inNorth East England. It does not cover all of the ceremonial or historic area of Durham, parts of which are covered by the neighbouring forces ofCleveland Police andNorthumbria Police. The other neighbouring forces areCumbria Constabulary to the west andNorth Yorkshire Police to the south.
As of September 2020[update], the force has 1,168police officers, 129special constables, and 131police community support officers (PCSO).[2]
Durham Constabulary was one of the first county police forces to be set up, established in 1839. The force absorbedDurham City Police (formed in 1836) in 1921,Hartlepool Borough Police (formed in 1851) in 1947,Sunderland Borough Police (formed in 1837) in 1967, andGateshead Borough Police (formed in 1836) andSouth Shields Borough Police (formed in 1839) in 1968, when it also lost some of its area toTeesside Constabulary.
In 1965, the force had an establishment of 1,763 and an actual strength of 1,626.[3]
As a result of theLocal Government Act 1972, the northern area of the force including Gateshead, Sunderland and South Shields became part of theNorthumbria Police area, whilstHartlepool andStockton-on-Tees in the south-east became part of the jurisdiction ofCleveland Constabulary in 1974.
ThePolice Roll of Honour Trust andPolice Memorial Trust list and commemorate all British police officers killed in the line of duty. Since its establishment in 1984, the Police Memorial Trust has erected 50 memorials nationally to some of those officers.
Since 1960, the following officers of Durham Constabulary were killed while attempting to prevent or stop a crime in progress:[12]
Durham Constabulary is managed by Chief Constable Rachel Bacon and her executive team, composed of Deputy Chief Constable Ciaron Irvine, Assistant Chief Constable Tonya Antonis, and Assistant Chief Officer Gary Ridley.[13]
The force operates through a number of functional commands: Neighbourhood And Safeguarding, Response Policing, Crime and Criminal Justice, Tasking and Co-ordination and Support Services, which all report to the Executive Team.
Since 2010, Durham Constabulary and neighbouringCleveland Police have sharedroad policing andfirearms teams through a joint Specialist Operations Unit. These officers are based at Wynyard Park Business Park and Spennymoor. In May 2021 the Chief Constable of Cleveland Police gave notice that they would be withdrawing from the CDSOU. Since 2022 Clevaland and Durham have operated separate Road Policing and Armed provisions but kept a joint training facility.[14] Durham and Cleveland Police have shared a tactical training centre inUrlay Nook, nearTeesside International Airport (formerly Durham Tees Valley Airport), since 2001.
As of September 2020[update], the force has 1,168police officers, 129special constables, and 131police community support officers (PCSO), 65police support volunteers (PSV), and 924 staff.[2]
His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) conducts a periodic police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy (PEEL) inspection of each police service's performance. In its latest PEEL inspection, Durham Constabulary was rated as follows:[15]
| Outstanding | Good | Adequate | Requires Improvement | Inadequate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 rating |
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| International | |
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| National | |