Chief Constable is therank used by thechief police officer of everyterritorial police force in the United Kingdom except for theCity of London Police and theMetropolitan Police, as well as the chief officers of the three 'special' national police forces, theBritish Transport Police,Ministry of Defence Police, andCivil Nuclear Constabulary. The title is also held by the chief officers of the principalCrown Dependency police forces (theIsle of Man Constabulary,States of Guernsey Police Service, andStates of Jersey Police) and theSovereign Base Areas Police in Cyprus. The title was also held,ex officio, by the president of theAssociation of Chief Police Officers under thePolice Reform Act 2002.[1] It was also the title of the chief officer of theRoyal Parks Constabulary until this agency was disbanded in 2004.
Throughout the United Kingdom and Crown Dependencies there are currently fifty chief constables. These consist of the chief officers of 37 English territorial forces outside London, four Welsh territorial forces, the Police Service of Scotland, thePolice Service of Northern Ireland, three special national forces and three Crown Dependency constabularies.
The chief officers of some police departments in Canada also hold the title of chief constable, for example theSurrey Police Service,[2] theVancouver Police Department[3][4] or theNew Westminster Police Department.[5]
The title is derived from the original localparish constables of the 18th century and earlier.Constable andconstabulary were terms adopted in an attempt to provide a historical link with the older forces – the term is derived from the Latincomes stabuli (keeper of the stables)[6] – and to emphasise local control. Much of the debate about policing in the early 19th century, when modern police forces were introduced in theUnited Kingdom, concerned fears that the new forces might becomeparamilitary agents of central government control. To this day otherBritish police ranks, such asinspector andsuperintendent, are determinedly non-paramilitary – only policesergeants hold a quasi-military rank and even then the term sergeant had long existed as a non-military officer of subordinate rank.
TheCounty Police Act 1839 gave the counties ofEngland and Wales the opportunity to establish full-time police forces, headed by a chief constable who was appointed by thejustices of the peace of the county. The first county to implement this wasWiltshire Constabulary, which appointedCaptainSamuel MeredithRN its first chief constable on 28 November 1839.[7] Other counties followed this pattern; for instance,Essex appointed its first chief constable on 11 February 1840.[8]
Originally, most borough police forces were commanded by ahead constable, although this rank was superseded by chief constable in most forces in the later 19th century and early 20th century and was almost completely abolished by thePolice Act 1919.Liverpool City Police was the only large force to retain it until then.
The first woman to hold the rank of chief constable wasPauline Clare, appointed Chief Constable of theLancashire Constabulary on 14 June 1995.[9]
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The population of areas for which chief constables are responsible varies from under a hundred thousand to two or three million, and it is commonplace for chief constables for larger force areas to be drawn from the chief constables of smaller forces. A chief constable has no senior officer. Prior to 2012, a chief constable was responsible to apolice authority. InEngland and Wales, the chief constable is now appointed by and accountable to thePolice and Crime Commissioner of their service, or to anelected mayor, who may also dismiss the chief constable.
The chief constable's badge of rank, worn on theepaulettes, consists of crossedtipstaffs in alaurel wreath, surmounted by a crown.[10] This is similar to the insignia of alieutenant-general in the British Army, and is also worn by anassistant commissioner in theMetropolitan Police.
The chief constable is assisted by adeputy chief constable (DCC) and one or moreassistant chief constables (ACC). The chief constable, DCC and ACCs are collectively known as the "chief officers" of a force.
The salaries of chief constables vary from force to force, primarily on the basis of the population of their force's territory, but the amounts are fixed centrally. As of 2022, the highest paid is the chief constable of thePolice Service of Northern Ireland, on £230,000, in recognition of the unique security challenges and political sensitivity of that office. TheCommissioner of the Metropolitan Police and theirdeputy are paid significantly more than any chief constable, partly because the Metropolitan Police has national anti-terrorism and security duties that overlap with other local forces, but also because the Metropolitan Police is by far the largest force in the country. As of 2011, the commissioner earns an annual salary of £260,088, whilst their deputy earns £214,722.[11]
InLondon, theMetropolitan Police and theCity of London Police are led bycommissioners rather than chief constables. Chief constable was, however, a lower rank in the Metropolitan Police which existed between 1886 and 1946.
In 1869, thedivisions of the Metropolitan Police were grouped into four districts, and four new officers calleddistrict superintendents were appointed to command them, ranking between thedivisional superintendents and the twoassistant commissioners. These officers were to be generally military officers, civil servants or lawyers who were directly appointed to the rank. This caused a certain amount of concern, since some saw it as the creation of an "officer class" for the police, which had always been resisted. Their rank badge consisted of crossedtipstaves in a wreath.
In 1886, the rank of district superintendent was renamed chief constable, as it was decided that it could be confused with the divisional superintendents. Unlike their superiors, chief constables were actually sworn into the office ofconstable, hence the name. A fifth chief constable was later created in theCriminal Investigation Department. In 1919 the rank became junior to the new rank ofdeputy assistant commissioners, who took over the districts in 1933, with the chief constables remaining as their deputies until the latter rank was finally renameddeputy commander in 1946.