| City of London Police | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1839; 186 years ago (1839) |
| Annual budget | £151 million[1] |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | City of London, England, United Kingdom |
 | |
| Area served by the City of London Police | |
| Size | 1.1 sq mi / 2.8 km² |
| Population |
|
| Legal jurisdiction | England and Wales |
| Governing body | Common Council of the City of London |
| Constituting instrument | |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Overseen by | |
| Headquarters | Guildhall |
| Police officers | 958[1] |
| Police staffs | 494[1] |
| Agency executive |
|
| Directorates | 5[1] |
| Facilities | |
| Stations | 1 |
| Website | |
www | |
TheCity of London Police is theterritorial police force responsible for law enforcement within theCity of London, England, including theMiddle andInner Temples.
The force responsible for law enforcement within the remainder of theLondon region, outside the city, is the much largerMetropolitan Police, a separate organisation. The City of London, which is now primarily a financial business district with a small resident population but a large commuting workforce, is the historic core of London, and has an administrative history distinct from that of the rest of the metropolis, of which its separate police force is one manifestation.
The City of London area has a resident population of around 8,700; however, there is also a daily influx of approximately 513,000 commuters into the city, along with thousands of tourists.[1]
Thepolice authority is theCommon Council of the City and, unlike other territorial forces inEngland and Wales, there is not apolice and crime commissioner replacing that police authority by way of thePolice Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011,[3] but like a police and crime commissioner, the Common Council is elected.
As of 2021[update], the force had a workforce of 1,355 including 861 full-time police officers and 494 support staff.[1] The force is also supported by much smaller numbers ofspecial constables,police community support officers, and designated officers. The headquarters is temporarily located at theGuildhall (which also housed it from 1832 to 1840) and there is an additionalstation atBishopsgate,[2] with former stations including Moor Lane (destroyed in theBlitz on 29 December 1940), Cloak Lane (closed 1965),[4] andWood Street (closed 2020).[5]
The City of London Police is the smallest territorial police force in England and Wales, both in terms of geographic area and head-count.[6] The current commissioner (equivalent to the chief constable in non-London forces), is Peter O'Doherty, who was appointed in a temporary capacity in October 2023, and is set to become permanent commissioner in 2024, subject to royal assent.[7]
| City of London Police Act 1839 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for regulating the Police in the City of London. |
| Citation | 2 & 3 Vict. c. xciv |
| Other legislation | |
| Repeals/revokes | Watching (City of London) Act 1736 |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Traditionally the responsibility for policing in the city had been divided between day and night CityWatch, primarily under the twosheriffs. Their responsibilities were shared with thealdermen's officers – the wardbeadles – who are now purely ceremonial. It was these officers' responsibility for ensuring that the Night Watch was maintained. Policing during the day eventually came under theCity Patrol, which evolved into theCity Day Police, which was modelled on theMetropolitan Police. TheLondon City Police was officially formed in 1832, before becoming the City of London Police with the passing of theCity of London Police Act 1839, which gave statutory approval to the force as an independent police body and headed off attempts made to merge it with the Metropolitan Police.[8][4] It moved its headquarters from the corporation's Guildhall to 26Old Jewry in 1840.[4]
The first officer of the force todie in the line of duty was in 1857, followed by 31 more to date, including three killed in the 1910Houndsditch murders. The force was involved in the investigation of theJack the Ripper murders.[4]
Teams of the City of London Police have participated in the Olympic games three times in thetug of war tournament. At the1908 Summer Olympics they won the gold medal, beating aLiverpool City Police team in the final. In1912 a joint City-Metropolitan Police team was beaten in the final by a Stockholm Police team. At the1920 Summer Olympics a solely City of London Police British team regained its title, beating the Netherlands. This was the last time tug of war was an Olympic sport, which means the City of London Police is still the reigning Olympic champion.[9][10]
The force has had special constables since at least 1911, when 1,648 were called for duty during docks strikes. There was one day in 1918, when the only warranted officer within the city of London was a special constable.[11] Several regular officers of the force were killed inNazi German air raids over London in 1941 and 1942.
The early 1990s saw theIRA carry out a number of high-profile attacks in the city as part ofthe Troubles, such as the 1992Baltic Exchange bombing and the1993 Bishopsgate bombing, resulting in huge economic and infrastructural damage. As a result, theTraffic and Environmental Zone, better known as the "ring of steel", was officially established in 1993 by Owen Kelly, the then City of London Police commissioner.[12] CommanderHugh Moore suffered a fatal heart failure in 1993 following a violent arrest.[13]
Some aspects of the ring of steel were 'stepped down' in the late 1990s following the cessation of IRA hostilities, but stepped up again after theSeptember 11 attacks.[14] The force's headquarters relocated toWood Street in 2001.[4]
The City of London Special Constabulary were awarded the Ferrers Trophy in 2006 for the efforts of their officers after the7 July 2005 London bombings. The award is given annually to police volunteers, for exceptional dedication and innovation. It was the first time in the award's history that an entire special constabulary received the trophy. In 2010 the same trophy was awarded to Special Constable Patrick Rarden of the Honourable Artillery Company Detachment (part of the City of London Special Constabulary) for using his banking skills and experience to help train colleagues and provide invaluable assistance to solve fraud cases.[15] 2002 saw the most recent City officer to die in the line of duty.
In 2015, the City of London Police mounted unit also escorted theexhumed remains of King Richard III through thecity of Leicester fromSt Nicholas Church toLeicester Cathedral, en route to their reburial.[16]
In May 2020, City of London Police officers stopped a vehicle driven by a man who had recently been interviewed byChannel 4 about a prior instance of police harassment, who they incorrectly accused of concealing drugs. After smashing his car window, officers strip-searched him, detained him for 21 hours and impounded his car.[17][18][19] Following an investigation, City of London Police acknowledged failings in their treatment of the man, including returning the vehicle to him without first removing the broken glass, but declined to apologise and said his arrest had been lawful.[20][21][22] In March 2021 theIndependent Office for Police Conduct ordered City of London Police to conduct a new investigation into the incident,[19] which resulted in the City of London Police having to apologise to the driver and identified 'organisational and individual learning'.[23]
The City Police is organised into fivedirectorates:[1]
Because of theCity's role as a world financial centre, the City of London Police has developed a great deal of expertise in dealing with fraud and "is the acknowledged lead force within the UK for economic crime investigation."[25] The Economic Crime Directorate includes:
Chief officer team:[30]
Whereas the majority of British police forces havewhite metalcap badges and buttons, those of the City Police arebrass. The force also have red and whitechequered sleeve and cap bands (red and white being the colours of the City of London), which in most other British police forces are black and white. In formal uniform, female officers wear a red and whitecravat.[31]
Theirhelmet (worn by male constables and sergeants) has altered little since its introduction in 1865 and has a crest instead of the white metal boss worn on the Metropolitan Police helmet. The "helmet plate" or badge is the City of Londoncoat of arms; this is unusual for a police force inEngland and Wales in that it does not includeSt Edward's Crown, neither does it have theBrunswick Star, which is used on most other police helmets in England and Wales.[32]
On state and ceremonial occasions, the commissioner and assistant commissioners wear a special court dress uniform with a goldaiguillette and acocked hat adorned with whiteswan's feathers; other than on these occasions, they wear standard uniform.[33]
City of London police officers carrywarrant cards.[34] Like most other police forces in Great Britain, City of London police officers arenot routinely armed, but some officers have received firearms training and areauthorised firearms officers.[35] City of London police equipment includesPAVA irritant spray, batons, and handcuffs. Many officers are also equipped with theTaserelectroshock weapon; according to the police force's reported figures, Tasers have been deployed (including drawing or "red-dotting") about seven times per month. In the September 2018 to September 2020 period, the City of London Police recorded 11 incidents of police officers firing Tasers on suspects.[36]
The City of London Police maintains a fleet ofpolice vehicles, including SUVs, compact cars, motorcycle, and vans, as well as onehorsebox.[37] All of the force's response vehicles, includingarmed response vehicles (ARVs) carry adefibrillator andfirst aid supplies, for use in the event of an emergency.[35]
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The City of London Police maintains amounted police unit.[38] In addition to regular duties, the horses of the mounted unit have been used to trample wildflower seeds at theBarbican Wildlife Garden at the request of the community wildlife gardeners.[39] The horses' ceremonial duties include participation inTrooping the Colour and theLord Mayor's Show.
The ranks from constable to chief superintendent are the same as all other British police forces. The three senior ranks are similar to those used by the Metropolitan Police.
Constables and sergeants displaycollar numbers on their rank badges (in the range 1 to 150 for sergeants and 151 to 999 for constables). Officers between the ranks of inspector and chief superintendent (who do not have collar numbers) display their warrant numbers instead.
| Rank | Commissioner | Deputy commissioner | Commander | Chief superintendent | Superintendent | Chief inspector | Inspector | Sergeant | Constable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insignia | .svg) |  |  | .svg) | .svg) |  |  |  |  |
| Note |
| ||||||||
The City of London police also has a special constabulary with seven ranks of officers. As with regular officers, constables and sergeants display collar numbers on their rank badges (in the range 1001 to 1099 for sergeants and 1101 to 1299 for constables) and the ranks of inspector and chief inspector display their warrant numbers, in all cases followed by the letters "SC".
| Rank | Special chief inspector | Special inspector | Special sergeant | Special constable | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insignia |  |  |  |  | |||||
| Note |
| ||||||||
As well as a PCSO rank
| Insignia |  |
|---|
The following is the current released workforce data. The "chief officer" category includes the commissioner, assistant commissioner and commanders, and the "special constable" category includes all special constable ranks.
| Rank | Police staff | Police support volunteer | Designated Officer | PCSO | Special constable | Constable | Sergeant | Inspector | Chief inspector | Superintendent | Chief superintendent | Chief officer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female personnel | 295 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 156 | 24 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| Male personnel | 211 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 62 | 485 | 96 | 29 | 18 | 10 | 6 | 4 |
| Total personnel | 506 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 79 | 641 | 120 | 43 | 27 | 15 | 7 | 5 |
| Reference | 2021 Police workforce open data tables[40] | |||||||||||
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As of December 2023, it consists of 47 volunteer officers, led by a special chief inspector, assisted by two special inspectors, sixspecial sergeants and 38 special constables.[41] The majority undertake duties during evenings and nights in support of the regular force in dealing with issues arising from the busy night-time economy of the city. However, other officers perform more specialist roles in the force's other directorates including supporting the National Lead Force (NLF) in the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) with a number of officers joining the national Cyber Volunteering initiative.
In 2023, the City of London Police undertook a major restructure of the COLP Special Constabulary, with the ranks of special commander and special superintendent being abolished and the chief officer now being special chief inspector who reports to the chief superintendent for local policing who in turn answers to the commander for ops and Security.[41]
Many officers have specialist training and perform duties as response drivers, "Level 2" public order officers and cycle officers. As in all forces, special constables are expected to commit to a minimum of 200 hours' duty each year, and in return receive out-of-pocket expenses and free travel on theTransport for London network. They receive no pay.
Uniform and equipment is identical to that of regular (full-time) police officers. Officers of theHonourable Artillery Company Detachment of Special Constabulary CLSC (originally part of theMetropolitan Special Constabulary but moved to the City force on reorganisation) wear the title "HAC" when in formal uniform.[42] Special Constables have four-digit collar numbers beginning 11 or 12, and Special Sergeants have four-digit collar numbers beginning 10.
TheCity of London Corporation, the local authority for the city, also operates further limited policing bodies. These bodies are not part of the City of London Police:
Ferrers Trophy overall winner – Special Constable Patrick Rarden of City of London Police. Patrick has used his banking skills and experience to help train colleagues and provide invaluable assistance to solve fraud cases. He has also established a new charity called "Waste Not, Want Not" to help feed rough sleepers.
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
