City of London Police

City of London Police Act 1839
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for regulating the Police in the City of London.
Citation	2 & 3 Vict. c. xciv
Text of statute as originally enacted

Traditionally the responsibility for policing in the city had been divided between day and night City Watch, primarily under the two sheriffs. Their responsibilities were shared with the aldermen's officers – the ward beadles – 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 the City Patrol, which evolved into the City Day Police, which was modelled on the Metropolitan Police. The London City Police was officially formed in 1832, before becoming the City of London Police with the passing of the City 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.[6][7]

In 1840, the City of London Police moved its headquarters from the corporation's Guildhall to 26 Old Jewry, where it remained until it was relocated to Wood Street in 2001.[7] The force's current headquarters is at the Guildhall.[7] Former stations include Moor Lane (destroyed in the Blitz on 29 December 1940) and Cloak Lane (closed 1965).[7]

Some notable events the force has been involved with include the Jack the Ripper murders, the 1910 Houndsditch murders, and the response to the IRA's bombing campaign during the years of the Troubles.[7] The early 1990s saw the IRA carry out a number of high-profile attacks in the city, such as the 1992 Baltic Exchange bombing and the 1993 Bishopsgate bombing, resulting in huge economic and infrastructural damage. As a result, the Traffic 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.[8] 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 the September 11 terrorist attacks.[9]

In May 2020, City of London Police officers stopped a vehicle driven by a man who had recently been interviewed by Channel 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.[10][11][12] 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.[13][14][15] In March 2021 the Independent Office for Police Conduct ordered City of London Police to conduct a new investigation into the incident.[12]

List of commissioners

Assistant Commissioner in ceremonial full-dress uniform for the Lord Mayor's Show.

• Daniel Whittle Harvey (1839–1863)
• Colonel Sir James Fraser (1863–1890)
• Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Henry Smith (1890–1902)
• Captain Sir William Nott-Bower (1902–1925)
• Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Hugh Turnbull (1925–1950)
• Colonel Sir Arthur Young (1950–1971)
• James Page (1971–1977)
• Peter Marshall (1977–1985)
• Owen Kelly (1985–1994)
• William Taylor (1994–1998)
• Perry Nove (1998–2002)
• James Hart (2002–2006)
• Mike Bowron (2006–2011)[16]
• Adrian Leppard (2011–2015)
• Ian Dyson (2016–2022)
• Angela McLaren (2022–present)

Officers killed in the line of duty

Sergeants Tucker and Bentley and Constable Choate, murdered while on duty on 16 December 1910

According to the Police Roll of Honour Trust, 32 City of London Police staff have died in the line of duty, the first in 1857 and the most recent in 2002. Line-of-duty deaths include three officers who were fatally shot in 1910 prior to the Siege of Sidney Street; several killed in Nazi German air raids over London in 1941 and 1942; and the 1993 death of Commander Hugh Moore (who suffered a heart failure following a violent arrest).[17]

The City Police is organised into five directorates:[1]

• Economic Crime Directorate
• Crime Directorate
• Uniformed Policing Directorate
• Information and Intelligence Directorate
• Business Support Directorate

Because of the City'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."[18] The Economic Crime Directorate includes:

• Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU)[19]
• Insurance Fraud Department (IFED)[20]
• National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) and Action Fraud
• Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU)
• Economic Crime Academy (ECA) responsible for delivering counter fraud and economic crime training both nationally and internationally[21]
• The Directorate also formerly had an Overseas Anti-Corruption Unit (OACU), however this unit (along with the Metropolitan Police's Proceeds of Corruption Unit) was transferred to the NCA in 2015 and renamed the International Corruption Unit (ICU).[22]

Whereas the majority of British police forces have white metal cap badges and buttons, those of the City Police are brass. The force also have red and white chequered 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 white cravat.[24]

Their helmet (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 London coat of arms; this is unusual for a police force in England and Wales in that it does not include St Edward's Crown, neither does it have the Brunswick Star, which is used on most other police helmets in England and Wales.[25]

On state and ceremonial occasions, the commissioner and assistant commissioners wear a special court dress uniform with a gold aiguillette and a cocked hat adorned with white swan's feathers; other than on these occasions, they wear standard uniform.[26]

A City of London Police car pictured in 2014

City of London police officers carry warrant cards.[27] Like most other police forces in Great Britain, City of London police officers are not routinely armed, but some officers have received firearms training and are authorised firearms officers.[28] City of London police equipment includes PAVA irritant spray, batons, and handcuffs. Many officers are also equipped with the Taser electroshock 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.[29]

The City of London Police maintains a fleet of police vehicles, including SUVs, compact cars, motorcycle, and vans, as well as one horsebox.[30] All of the force's response vehicles, including armed response vehicles (ARVs) carry a defibrillator and first aid supplies, for use in the event of an emergency.[28]

Mounted Section officers

The City of London Police maintains a mounted police unit.[31] In addition to regular duties, the horses of the mounted unit have been used to trample wildflower seeds at the Barbican Wildlife Garden at the request of the community wildlife gardeners.[32] The horses' ceremonial duties include participation in Trooping the Colour and the Lord Mayor's Show; the City of London Police mounted unit also escorted the exhumed remains of King Richard III through the city of Leicester from St Nicholas Church to Leicester Cathedral, en route to their reburial.[33]

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.

Insignia

Constables and sergeants display collar 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. All officers also wear name badges with their rank and surname (e.g. Police Constable John Smith would wear a badge displaying "Constable Smith").

City of London Police ranks
Rank	Commissioner	Assistant commissioner	Commander	Chief superintendent	Superintendent	Chief inspector	Inspector	Sergeant	Constable
Insignia
Note	City of London Police insignia are worn on square patches on the upper arm of working dress or on the epaulettes in more formal dress.

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 officers between the ranks of inspector and chief superintendent display their warrant numbers, in all cases followed by the letters "SC". The rank badge for a special commander is identical to that for a regular commander. Name badges are identical to those worn by regular officers (e.g. Special Sergeant Mary Jones would wear a badge displaying "Sergeant Jones").

City of London Special Constabulary ranks and insignia
Rank	Special Commander	Special Chief Superintendent	Special Superintendent	Special Chief Inspector	Special Inspector	Special Sergeant	Special Constable
Insignia
Note	City of London Police insignia are worn on square patches on the upper arm of working dress or on the epaulettes in more formal dress. Honourable Artillery Company special constables wear the letters HAC in addition.

As well as a PCSO rank

Police Community Support Officer Rank
Insignia

The gold medal-winning City of London Police team at the 1908 Summer Olympics.

Teams of the City of London Police have participated in the Olympic games three times in the tug of war tournament. At the 1908 Summer Olympics they won the gold medal, beating a team of the Liverpool Police in the final. In 1912 the team was beaten in the final by one of the Stockholm Police. At the 1920 Summer Olympics the 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.[41][42]

The City of London Police Museum is dedicated to the police force and its story of policing.[43] Exhibits include uniforms, Victorian-era police equipment and artefacts, communication devices, World War II displays, and exhibits about Jack the Ripper and other famous murder cases.

The museum relocated in November 2016 to the space formerly used by the Clockmakers' Museum, next to the Guildhall Library.[44] The new museum was funded by a £90,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant.[44][45] It was closed to become a COVID testing centre during the COVID-19 pandemic and as of May 2022 had not yet reopened.[46]

The Corporation of London, the local authority for the city, also operates further limited policing bodies. These bodies are not part of the City of London Police:

• City of London market constabularies
• Hampstead Heath Constabulary,
• Epping Forest Keepers

• Fraud Squad
• Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
• List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories
• Project Griffin

Wikimedia Commons has media related to City of London Police.

• Official website
• City of London Police at HMICFRS