Hampshire Constabulary

Hampshire Constabulary
Common name	The Constabulary
Logo of the Hampshire Constabulary
Motto	Working for Safer Communities
Agency overview
Formed	1839
Preceding agency	Basingstoke Borough Police, Romsey Borough Police, Lymington Borough Police, Andover Borough Police, Portsmouth City Police, Southampton City Police & Isle of Wight County Constabulary
Employees	6,768
Volunteers	457
Annual budget	£281.9 million
Legal personality	Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction*	Police area of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in the country of England, UK
Map of police area
Population	1.8 million
Legal jurisdiction	England & Wales
Governing body	Hampshire Police Authority
Constituting instrument	Police Act 1996
General nature	Law enforcement Local civilian police
Operational structure
Overviewed by	Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary/Independent Police Complaints Commission
Headquarters	West Hill, Winchester, England, UK
Constables	4,084 (of which 453 are special constables)
PCSOs	334
Agency executive	Alex Marshall, Chief Constable
Divisions	5
Facilities
Stations	60
Airbases	1 - RAF Odiham (Operated by South East Air Support Unit)
Patrol cars	915
Boats	5
Helicopter & Aircrafts	2 Eurocopter EC135 & 1 Britten-Norman Islander (both operated by South East Air Support Unit)
Dogs	40
Website
http://www.hampshire.police.uk/
Footnotes
* Police area agency: Prescribed geographic area in the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction.

Hampshire Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in southern England.

The force area includes the cities of Winchester, Southampton and Portsmouth. The current Hampshire Constabulary dates from 1967 but modern policing in Hampshire can be traced back to 1832.

History

The first police force formed in Hampshire was Winchester City Police in 1832. Hampshire County Constabulary was formed seven years later in 1839 as a result of the County Police Act of that year. The Isle of Wight County Constabulary was formed in 1890 with the granting of administrative county status to the Island.

During the 19th century, Hampshire County Constabulary absorbed various borough forces including Basingstoke Borough Police (1836–1889), Romsey Borough Police (1836–1865), Lymington Borough Police (1836–1852) and Andover Borough Police (1836–1846).

In 1943, during the Second World War, due to the Defence (Amalgamation of Police Forces) Regulations of 1942 Hampshire County Constabulary absorbed the Isle of Wight and Winchester forces to form Hampshire Joint Police Force. City forces such as Southampton City Police and Portsmouth City Police remained independent.

In 1948, the merger was made permanent and regularised, with Hampshire Joint Police Force being renamed Hampshire Constabulary.

The name was changed once again in 1952, to Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary. In 1967 Hampshire, and city forces Southampton and Portsmouth were amalgamated under the Police Act 1964 becoming the current Hampshire Constabulary. In 1974, the Local Government Act meant that responsibility for policing Christchurch moved to the control of Dorset. Since then, apart from minor border changes, the force area has remained the same. In 1965, the force had an establishment of 1,346 and an actual strength of 1,137.

The Hampshire Constabulary is overseen by Hampshire Police Authority, an independent organisation intended to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the force.

Chief Constables

• 1839–1842 - Captain George Robbins
• 1842–1856 - Captain William C. Harris CB
• 1856–1891 - Captain John Henry Forrest
• 1891–1893 - Captain Peregrine Henry Thomas Fellowes (died in office)
• 1894–1928 - Major St Andrew Bruce Warde
• 1928–1942 - Major Ernest Radcliffe Cockburn
• 1942–1962 - Sir Richard Dawnay Lemon
• 1962–1977 - Sir Douglas Osmond
• 1977–1988 - Sir John Duke
• 1988–1999 - Sir John Hoddinott
• 1999–2008 - Paul Kernaghan QPM
• 2008–present - Alex Marshall

Significant events

• 1893 - Chief Constable Fellowes was injured outside Police HQ in Winchester while trying to stop a runaway horse; he died several days later from his wounds.
• 1970 - Isle of Wight Festival.
• 1972 - An IRA car bomb exploded at 16th Parachute Brigade Headquarters in Aldershot, killing seven people.
• 1982 - Havant Policing Scheme pioneered by Chief Constable John Duke, emphasized the need for linking communication technology with beat officers.
• 1984–1985 - The Miners' Strike. Along with other police forces Hampshire contributed officers to police the miners' strike under the umbrella of "Mutual Aid". Hampshire was the first to fly their officers to the strike areas.
• 1985 - The force aircraft, an Optica, crashed with loss of both crew.
• 1987 - The Great Storm. The storm caused considerable damage across the force area including the destruction of Shanklin Pier. A Hampshire police officer, Chief Inspector John Smith, was one of the 19 casualties of the storm when a tree fell onto his car.
• 2000 - In July 2000, the News of the World published an article about Sarah's Law. The article named and shamed pedophiles in the Paulsgrove area of Portsmouth leading to a mass riot.
• 2006 - On 15 May Hampshire Constabulary became the first to launch the new single non-emergency telephone number (SNEN), 101, as an alternative for the 999 number for reporting less serious or anti-social offences.
• 2008 - Eastleigh MP Chris Huhne revealed publicly that Matthew Myatt, a local freelance photojournalist using a Freedom of Information Request, had discovered that a number of serving police officers in Hampshire, had criminal convictions including benefit fraud, taking without consent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
• 2010 - On 13 February violence erupted outside St. Mary's Stadium in Southampton after the South Coast Derby. 12 people were seriously injured. This is not the first such incident involving rivals Southampton FC & Portsmouth FC, in 2003 violence spread across the Fratton area of Portsmouth causing much damage to personal homes. Also in 2005 there was clashes in the St. Mary's & Northam areas of Southampton.
• 2011 - On 22 May the force called in Marwell Wildlife to advise how to tranquilise a white tiger lurking in grass at Hedge End. The tiger turned out to be a life-size cuddly toy.

Organisation

Divisions

Current force structure

The force is currently divided into 6 local policing divisions known as Operational Command Units (OCUs). The accompanying map shows the divisions, along with major cities in the county.

Central

• Fareham
• Gosport
• Havant
• Hayling Island
• Waterlooville
• Alresford
• Bishop's Waltham
• Winchester - Central OCU HQ.

Isle of Wight

• Newport - IoW OCU HQ.
• Cowes
• Ryde
• Shanklin
• Ventnor
• Yarmouth

North & East

• Tadley
• Basingstoke - North & East OCU HQ.
• Whitchurch
• Fleet
• Farnborough
• Aldershot
• Yateley
• Alton
• Petersfield
• Whitehill

City of Portsmouth

• Eastney
• Southsea
• Portsmouth Central - Portsmouth OCU HQ.
• Copnor
• North End
• Cosham
• Stamshaw
• Farlington
• Old Portsmouth
• Fratton
• Milton

City of Southampton

• Southampton Central - Southampton OCU HQ.
• Bitterne
• Portswood
• Shirley
• Milbrook
• Maybush
• Lordswood
• Bassett
• Swaythling
• Thornhill
• Sholing
• Woolston

Western

• Andover
• Stockbridge
• Romsey
• Eastleigh - Western OCU HQ.
• Hedge End
• Totton
• Hythe
• Lyndhurst
• Lymington
• New Milton
• Ringwood
• Fordingbridge

Headquarters

• Police HQ - Winchester
• Operations Command - Netley (nr. Southampton)

(New HQ & Command Center being built in Chandlers Ford outside Southampton)

Previous territorial organisation

Force structure to April 2006

Until April 2006 Hampshire Constabulary was divided into 10 Basic Command Units (BCUs) with 46 associated police stations as follows:

• Isle of Wight (Z)—Newport (HQ), Ryde, Shanklin, Ventnor, Yarmouth.
• New Forest (D)—Lyndhurst (HQ), Lymington, New Milton, Ringwood, Totton, Hythe, Fordingbridge.
• West Hampshire (W)—Eastleigh (HQ), Hedge End, Romsey, Andover, Stockbridge, Weyhill.
• Southampton (S)—Southampton Central (HQ), Bitterne, Shirley, Portswood.
• Central Hampshire (O)—Winchester—North Walls (HQ), Arlesford, Alton, Petersfield, Twyford, Whitehill.
• Solent East (H)—Fareham (HQ), Gosport, Meon Valley (Bishop's Waltham), Park Gate.
• Portsmouth (K)—Fratton (HQ), Portsmouth Central, Southsea, Cosham.
• Havant (J)—Havant (HQ), Hayling Island, Waterlooville.
• Basingstoke (B)—Basingstoke (HQ), Whitchurch, Tadley.
• North-East Hampshire (A)—Aldershot (HQ), Farnborough, Fleet, Hartley Wintney, Yateley.

Members of ACPO

Chief Constable (CC) Alex Marshall
Deputy Chief Constable (DCC) Simon Cole
Assistant Chief Constable Territorial Operations: Laura Nicholson
Assistant Chief Constable Crime and Criminal Justice: David Pryde
Assistant Chief Constable Human Resource and Operations: Steve Dann
Director of Finance and Resources Michael Coombes

Operations

Road Policing Unit

Hampshire Constabulary patrol several miles of the M3 and M27, M271 & M275 as well as many other 'A' roads including the A3, A27, A31, A34, A303 and many more.

Dog Support Unit

Hampshire Constbulary started using canines in policing in 1959 with two dogs, they now have a variety of dogs in use in all divisions of the county, working 24 hours a day. They are based in Netley. The unit is headed by an Inspector, and is made up of 2 Sergeants, 26 Constables and several civilian staff. The dogs are trained in variety of skills including passive drug searching, firearms, explosives, ammunitions, and currency searching, as well as locating people in any kind of situation including collapsed buildings.

Tactical Firearms Support Unit

Hampshire Firearms Unit is a sub-department of the Operations department that responds to major and serious crimes where firearms are involved and firearms training. The unit responds to incidents with firearms and taser guns.

Criminal Investigation Department

Hampshire's Criminal Investigation Department comes under the Crime department and is responsible for investigating all crimes using a variety of techniques that their Detectives have available to them.

Marine Unit

The Marine Unit deals with all crime on the coasts of Hampshire, and has recently moved under the remit of CID because of the terrorism and serious crime connotations involved in guarding the coast. The unit has one Sergeant and nine Constables. They use two rigid inflatables and three semi displacement launches.

Air Support Unit

Hampshire Air Support is provided by South East Air Support Unit, a joint consortium established to provide police aviation for Sussex Police, Surrey Police and Hampshire Constabulary. Formed in October 2010, it is based in Hampshire and West Sussex. The consortium includes two EC135 Eurocopter's & 1 Britten-Norman Islander.

Locations

The headquarters of Hampshire Constabulary is located in a tall post-war office building in West Hill, Winchester on the site of the first headquarters which were built in 1847. The building can be seen on the skyline from most approaches to the city. The force's central administration departments are based here together with the Chief Constable and staff officers. Plans where announced (24 June 2008) to sell off the building for development and to move the headquarters to Southampton, and building on the new site began in 2009. However the majority of the operational headquarters’ departments including the force control room are located at the Support Headquarters in Netley, just outside Southampton.

Equipment

Headgear

Helmet - Constable

Helmet - Sergeant

Male constables and sergeants of Hampshire Constabulary wear the traditional custodian helmet in the comb style for foot patrol. However unlike most forces, Hampshire is one of only three that does not use the more common Brunswick star style badge, favouring instead a large metal plate in the shape of a wreath with a crowned rose and a banner that reads 'Hampshire'.

Constables wear larger helmet plates of uncoloured white metal whilst sergeants have a slightly smaller helmet plate that includes blue and red enamelled detail to the crown, rose and county title. The helmet plate worn by constables is the largest of all those worn by forces in England and Wales making them stand out in the company of officers from other areas.

Officers wear a peaked cap when on mobile patrol in vehicles and white peaked caps for Roads Policing Unit (RPU) officers. Female officers wear a bowler hat, or a white bowler hat for female RPU officers. PCSO's always wear a peaked cap with a blue band.

Officers holding the rank of Inspector or above always wear the peaked cap.

Uniform

When on duty officers wear a black wicking t-shirt with 'Police' on the sleeves, and black uniform trousers. Hampshire officers no longer use the traditional police jumper, having favoured the black fleece with police written on the chest and back. Hampshire officers do not have Brunswick stars on their epaulettes, just the rank and collar number. PCSO's wear a similar uniform, however instead of a black wicking shirt they have a blue polo shirt.

Formal dress comprises an open-necked tunic, with white shirt/blouse and tie/cravat. Constables and Sergeants wear custodian helmet's and collar numbers on their epaulettes, all higher ranked officers wear peaked caps, name badges and their rank on their epaulettes. The No.1 uniform is accompanied by black boots or shoes and occasionally black gloves, or brown gloves for the rank of Inspector and above.

Hampshire Constabulary also list leggings as part an optional piece of uniform.

Equipment

Hampshire Constabulary officers carry TETRA digital radios, HTC PDAs, Hiatt rigid handcuffs, CS incapacitant gas, the ASP 21" collapsible baton, leg restraints, a resuscitation mask and a basic first aid kit. PCSO's don't carry ASPs, handcuffs, leg restraints or PAVA. Should they be required to, some officers can use body-mounted cameras. Police vehicles contain a variety of equipment, which can include Arnold batons, traffic cones, road signs, breathalyzers, stingers, speed guns and more.

Vehicles and livery

Hampshire Constabulary use many different makes of vehicles from BMW, Ford and Skoda for the diverse categories of response vehicles required by the modern Police officer.
The force uses many different vehicles. Some of them are listed below with principal uses.

New type hampshire Police vehicles (Front) Fitted with ANPR

New type hampshire Police vehicles (Rear) Fitted with ANPR

• Mercedes Sprinter - Patrol Van and Prisoner Transport - 80 vehicles
• Ford Focus - Response Car - 200 vehicles
• Ford S-Max - Collision Investigation Unit - 10 vehicles
• Ford Fiesta - Neighbourhood policing - 60 vehicles
• Ford Mondeo - Dog Section - 20 vehicles
• Ford Transit - Neighbourhood policing - 20 vehicles
• Ford Transit Connect - CSI Unit - 10 vehicles
• BMW 5 Series - OCU Commander Unit - 12 vehicles
• BMW 5 Series - Armed Response - 20 vehicles
• Škoda Octavia VRS Marked - Area Car - 20 vehicles
• Škoda Octavia VRS Unmarked - Roads Policing Unit - 10 vehicles
• Subaru Legacy Unmarked - Roads Policing Unit - 10 vehicles
• BMW 530d - Roads Policing Unit - 60 vehicles
• BMW 330d - Roads Policing Unit - 30 vehicles
• BMW X5 - Roads Policing Unit OR Armed Response - 25 vehicles
• Nissan Navara - Mounted Police Unit or Rural Policing (Used to tow Horse Boxes) - 5 vehicles
• Land Rover Defender - Rural Policing - 5 vehicles

Volvo xc70 - rural area car

• Land Rover Tangi - Public Disorder Unit - 12 vehicles
• Honda Pan-European Motorcycle - Road Policing and Escort Duties - 11 vehicles

Livery

Typical traditional Hampshire Police vehicles' livery.

Typical new generic Battenburg markings.

Hampshire Constabulary use the modern yellow and blue retro-reflective Battenberg markings all over all operational vehicles with the force crest on the bonnet. Hampshire Constabulary used to use a distinctive traditional vehicle paint scheme of red and white diagonal stripes above a chequered blue and white band for many years. Hampshrie Constabulary stopped using these police car markings between 2000-2005 when Battenburg markings were invented.

Name

The different names of forces that have policed the modern counties of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight are graphically illustrated in the following time-line:

Strength and recruitment

Hampshire Constabulary employs over 6,000 people and over 425 volunteers. Of which roughly a third are frontline staff and officers.

Hampshire Constabulary currently is not recruiting Constables, PCSOs, transferred officers, civilian staff or control room operators due to budget cuts. They are only hiring for roles that need to be filled.

They are however aggressively recruiting people for voluntary roles such as Police Support Volunteer and Special Constabulary, making their target of recruiting 425 by 2009.

Training for new recruits in Hampshire is held at the Headquarters. For Constables it consists of eight months' training and a two-year probationary period. For PCSOs it consists of 18 weeks' training and a 15-weeks probationary period. For Special Constables it consists of 7 months of training during weeknights and weekends, and a two-year probationary period or less, dependent on the number of tours of duty.

Recruits receive their warrant card and uniform in the first two months of training. Once the training period is over, the new officers are posted in a local division.

Future of Hampshire Constabulary

In a report published by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in July 2011, the impact on the number of police officers and staff partly due to the reduction to Hampshire Constabulary's budget following the comprehensive spending review is as follows:

	Police officers	Police staff	PCSOs	Total
31 March 2010 (actual)	3,748	2,424	347	6,519
31 March 2015 (proposed)	3,294	1,563	337	5,194

Performance

British Crime Survey

The British Crime Survey for 2009/2010 found that crime had fallen in 5 out of 7 key offences in Hampshire, in one case fallen by 27% for 'Theft of a vehicle'. The other two key offences had not risen or fallen. Reported crime was slightly below national average, between -0.28 and -2.84. Assistant Chief Constable David Pryde called these figures 'very positive for the residents of Hampshire and Isle of Wight'.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary

A report from March 2010 by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary marked Hampshire Constabulary as 'Fair' at 'Local crime and policing' and ' Confidence and satisfaction', and 'Good' at 'Protecting from serious harm'. They achieved good and fair marks for all aspects of policing except 'Excellent' at 'Suppressing gun crime' and 'Poor' for 'Comparative satisfaction of BME community'.

Hampshire Constabulary overall 'has a low crime rates and is a comparatively safe place to live'. The force employs slightly less officers and staff than its peer forces, and is therefore slightly cheaper to run, yet has the similar levels of confidence as its peers. Hampshire showed particular strength in 'tackling serious crime'.

Independent Police Complaints Commission

In the period of April 2010 till December 2010 complaints and allegations recorded against Hampshire Constabulary decreased from the previous year. Hampshire's overall complaints rate of 206 per 100 employees is slightly above the national average of 172. In that period Hampshire were above national average for complaints concerning 'Neglect or Failure in duty' and 'Oppressive Conduct or Harassment'. Of the total amount of complaints received 1% were discontinued, 3% were dispensed and 5% were withdrawn. Complaints dispensed and withdrawn were both 5% lower than the national average. 11% of complaints were found to have 'substantiated finding', 4% higher than the national average.

In the media

Graham Hurley draws on his knowledge of the Hampshire Constabulary, in particular Portsmouth CID for his series of police procedural novels. Set in Portsmouth and revolving around the fictional Detective Inspector Joe Faraday they portray a gritty picture of the city and its crime.

Ruth Rendell's series of crime novels are set in the fictional town of Kingsmarkham. In the books the town is described as being in Sussex, however when the books were televised, Romsey was chosen as the setting for the location filming. Inspector Wexford is often seen wearing a Hampshire Constabulary tie and warrant card badge. Hampshire Constabulary authorised the use of the force logo and have provided props and material for the series.

Hampshire Constabulary has featured in various series of Traffic Cops, an occasional BBC One documentary. The programme focuses on the work of Hampshire's Roads Policing officers and highlights issues relating to road safety and reducing the number of road deaths and serious injuries. In previous series, Traffic Cops has attracted over seven million viewers.^{[citation needed]}

Hampshire Constabulary was followed for a documentary following the work of the emergency services in the UK. This particular documentary was named Real Rescues and had a total of 69 episodes over three series since October 15, 2007. Real Rescues was broadcast on BBC One.^{[citation needed]}

Hampshire Constabulary was involved with Channel 4 to record three episodes, The Force, following detectives at Portsmouth and Hulse Road, Southampton. This documentary focused on the more serious crimes and showed the in-depth investigation taken by the detectives. It also featured Hampshire's dedicated Rape unit.^{[citation needed]}

Other activities

Arson Task Force

Since 2007 the Hampshire Arson Task Force is a collaboration of resources between Hampshire Constabulary and Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service. The collaboration is the first of its kind in the UK, the force assists in investigations and provides intelligence and knowledge relevant to incidents. The team is made up of officers from both supporting organisations and a specialised dog that can detect deliberate fire starting articles such as lighter fluid.

Hampshire Horsewatch

In an effort to keep Equine Crime at low levels, Hampshire Constabulary supports a Horsewatch programme in Hampshire to maintain awareness and tackle equine crime, including theft of animals, equipment and vehicles. The force gives Equine Liaison Officer status to officers who have knowledge of equine matters and asks them to voluntarily liaise with equine community.

CountryWatch

CountryWatch is continuing programme of policing operations to tackle rural crime such as theft, poaching, fly-tipping and nusiance vehicles. The programme promotes reassurance and communications, particularly between rural and neighbourhood officers. Assistant Chief Constable Laura Nicholson is the ACPO lead for CountryWatch.

See also

• Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
• List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom
• Table of police forces in the United Kingdom

External links

• Official website
• Hampshire Police Authority
• Hampshire Constabulary History Society
• Weeke local history - Hampshire Police HQ
• Hampshire Marine Watch
• Matthew Myatt - Official website

Sources

• Watt, I. A. (1967). A history of the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary 1839–1966. Winchester, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary.
• Lee, J., Peake, C., et al. (2001). Policing Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Chichester, Phillimore. ISBN 1-86077-196-3