By the end of the twentieth century, the police service in England and Wales was likely to experience the greatest change it had ever encountered. According to one author:
The police institution is beset by innovation and undergoing changes which seem momentous since the establishment of the Metropolitan Police. The tacit contract between police and public, so delicately drawn between the 1850s and 1950s had begun to fray glaringly by 1981. The still open question is whether current efforts will suffice to repair it. (Reiner 1985, 62)
Various central government commissions examined such diverse issues as:
• The practices and procedures to be adopted by the police with regard to the criminal justice process
• The current and future structure of the service
• The political and managerial control of forces
These commissions were created at least partially in response to serious difficulties that had faced the service since the 1980s, including both external relations between police and public and internal revelations of scandal and wrongdoing.
The purpose of this article is fourfold. First, it provides a brief historical description of the development of the police service in England and Wales since its inception in 1829. Second, it examines the structure, including the political and managerial controls under which it operates. Third, it discusses some of the difficulties that the service experienced and, finally, comments on three major initiatives promulgated by central government to address those perceived problems.
The History and Development of British Police Forces
The first formal professional police force in England and Wales was the London Metropolitan Force, which was created following enactment of the Metropolitan Police Act in 1829. This act provided for a single force for the metropolis and ensured that policing would cover a radius of approximately seven miles from the city center.
In 1835, the Municipal Corporations Act required new towns and boroughs in England and Wales to establish police forces. This act applied to 178 corporate towns, although not all towns took advantage of the act to establish police forces. The problem of rural police forces was addressed in the County Police Act of 1839, which was intended to permit regular police forces for the fifty-six existing counties in England and Wales. Because the Municipal Corporations Act gave virtual unlimited discretion to local authorities in setting standards of pay, recruitment, and service, the result was the creation of forces widely differing in quality. To avoid this result among counties, the County Police Act of 1839 retained significant powers given by central government, a condition that still exists today. The home secretary was empowered to regulate the conditions of pay and service of county forces and provided that the appointment of the chief constable of each force be approved by him. Again, because this act was ”enabling” rather than ”obligatory,” only twenty-eight counties created police forces under it.
By 1848, there were 182 police forces in Great Britain. However, over time, a number of smaller forces were amalgamated with either the county force in which they were situated or with larger city departments. According to Stead (1985):
The next principle measure was the County and Borough Police Act of 1856, known as the ”Obligatory Act.” This is the major landmark in the making of Britain’s modern police system. . . . The Act of 1856 produced a model for the nationwide standardization of police that characterizes the British system today. (p. 49)
This legislation placed on central government, for the first time, the responsibility of ensuring that a police force was established in every county and borough throughout the United Kingdom and to ensure that they were operating in an efficient manner. In addition to the home secretary’s responsibilities, as stated earlier, a further important provision was that the central government undertook the obligation of providing a proportion of financing for those forces certified as efficient. As a result, central and local government became partners in providing police service in Britain—a model that continues to exist in contemporary policing. By 1939, England and Wales had 183 police forces.
The watershed for the development of the modern police service came with the Royal Commission on Police in 1962. The outcome of the commission’s deliberations was the Police Act of 1964, which sets the structure of policing in England and Wales and is the basis on which modern policing is formulated. Stead (1985) notes:
The Police Act of 1964 marks a decisive stage in police development. It reaffirmed the principle of local participation in police governance. It gave Parliament a whole range of subjects on which it can question the Home Secretary and it makes possible the consolidations of the 1960s. (p. 103)
Following the local government reorganization in 1974, the number of forces was reduced to forty-three. As of 1992 there were fifty-two police forces in the United Kingdom with 29,243 special constables to assist in law enforcement. These forces vary in size from 798 sworn officers (City of London Police) to more than 28,000 (Metropolitan Police Force). These totals take no account of civilian staff whose numbers have swelled considerably during the past few years as forces have implemented extensive civilianization programs to ensure that police officers are not tied down with clerical and administrative tasks.
Although the geographic area that each force covers varies, the boundaries are coterminus with the principal local government areas. Each force has the total responsibility for policing policy and operations taking place within its area.
Although this reorganization was hailed by many as promoting greater economy and efficiency through the elimination of many small forces, it was not without its critics. Stead (1985) indicates:
Whether greater size really brought greater efficiency was doubted, when it kept the command too remote from the front line. One major disadvantage was felt in the most important sphere of all—that of the police’s relationship to the public. . . . The change entailed some loss on the human side of policing and must be seen in the context of a wholesale reshuffling of local government structures, from which the country has yet to recover. (p. 95)
In short, the readjustment of forces in 1974, while encouraging efficiency by creating larger forces resulting in greater economy, also created problems in service delivery. Larger police forces resulted in both greater separation between the administration and those at the sharp end of policing, and greater personal distance between the forces and the public they served. The latter problem was no small issue for a police service that prided itself on service delivery and relied heavily on its personal relationship with the people it served.
The Structure of Police Authority
The chief officer of each force (i.e., a chief constable in all forces except the
Metropolitan and City of London forces, each of which is headed by a commissioner) is totally responsible for the operational policing in his area. However, in all forces except the two outlined above, the local authority has the responsibility under the Police Acts of 1964 and 1976 to maintain an adequate and efficient police force for its area. In this regard, they appoint a police committee composed of local politicians and magistrates to oversee policing issues. They also have the responsibility for appointing the chief constable and serve as his disciplinary authority.
On a national basis, the secretary of state for home affairs (the home secretary), who is a senior member of the government, has a direct responsibility for the police service. He or she exercises control through the home office and his or her role is primarily to maintain a consistent national policy on policing. This responsibility is undertaken primarily through the medium of home office circulars, which do not have the force of law, but which provide chief officers with advice and guidance on a variety of policing issues. In addition, central government through the home office funds 51% of all policing costs and, as a result, maintains a considerable level of control. In effect, therefore, police forces are controlled by what is called a tripartite arrangement among:
• The home office, which maintains a consistent national policy
• The local authority, which is responsible for maintaining an adequate and efficient police force for its area
• The chief constable, who is responsible for the operational efficiency and the day-to-day management of the force
In summary, therefore, although the home secretary possesses administrative power and control over the police service, he or she tends to limit the use of such authority. Thus, the chief constables and the local authorities are afforded a good deal of discretion to operate their police force in a manner suitable to local needs and requirements.
While this system has withstood the test of time, questions were raised as to whether the same arrangement should continue in the future. Vize (1992) indicates that the review of police organizations, which was commenced on the instructions of the home secretary in the summer of 1992 and which is commented on later in this article, would include a detailed examination of the powers of police authorities, including their control of constabulary budgets. This review raised issues of principle, particularly that of the accountability of local forces.
Having commented on issues concerning the control of police forces, we now propose to look at the rank structure. With the exception of the Metropolitan and City of London forces, the rank structure for sworn personnel is identical in all police forces in England and Wales. (In the Metropolitan Police the rank structure above chief superintendent is commander, deputy assistant commissioner, assistant commissioner, deputy commissioner, and commissioner. In the city of London, it is assistant commissioner, deputy commissioner, and commissioner.) The standard rank structure is outlined below:
• Chief constable
• Deputy chief constable
• Assistant chief constable
• Chief superintendent
• Superintendent
• Chief inspector
• Inspector sergeant constable
Note that there are a considerable number of layers of management in this structure, which results in an average of one supervisor to every three constables.
Contemporary Issues
At no other time since its inception has the police service in England and Wales come under greater scrutiny than in the 1980s. Gone were the days when it enjoyed the support of virtually all the community, a fact evidenced by the results of the British Crime Surveys of 1983 and 1988. These surveys revealed that while there was continuing support for the police, it had been declining over time. This situation was brought about, in part, by the adverse publicity the service attracted due to malpractice on the part of some of its members. It was also a consequence of social, political, and economic changes experienced by British society.
One of the most significant factors that contributed to the erosion of public support for the police service was the outbreak of serious urban disturbances across England in the 1980s. Just as the United States experienced rioting in a number of major cities in the 1960s, rioting in English cities broke out in the early 1980s. The first of these occurred in the St. Paul’s District of Bristol in April 1980. Almost one year to the day later, serious disorders in Brixton resulted in widespread damage and injury to 279 police officers and 45 citizens (Benyon 1984, 3). Other cities that experienced rioting in 1981 included Birmingham, Sheffield, Leeds, Leicester, and Derby.
In response to the Brixton disturbances, Parliament appointed the Rt. Hon. Lord Scarman, OBE, a highly respected appeals court judge, to head an inquiry into the causes of the disorders. The results of the investigation were released in November 1981. According to the Scarman Report:
… a combination of a high incidence of deprived groups in the population, the difficulties of living in the inner cities, the economic, social, and political disadvantages of the ethnic minorities, and the latter’s complete loss of confidence in the police . . . constituted a potential for collective violence. Scarman regarded ”Operation Swamp” … a massive and visible police presence as the accelerator event which triggered actual political violence. (Benyon 1984, 28)
With respect to the role of the police:
Lord Scarman came to the view that the ”history of relations between the police and the people of Brixton during recent years has been a tale of failure.” (Benyon 1984, 100)
Further disorders were experienced in 1982 and again in 1985. The most serious of these took place in London in October 1985:
The rioting began at about 7 p.m. on Sunday 6 October 1985, and during a night of extraordinary violence PC Keith Blakelock was stabbed to death, 20 members of the public and 223 police officers were injured and 47 cars and some buildings were burned. (Benyon and Solomos 1987, 7)
Commenting on the observation that the 1981 and 1985 urban disturbances were fundamentally antipolice, David Smith notes:
It does appear that racism and racial prejudice within the police, and the concentration of certain kinds of policing on young people generally and particularly young black people, has brought forth a response both at the individual level and also at a more collective level. (Benyon and Solomos 1987, 72)
Certainly, just as the Scarman Report indicated, the cause of these riots, similar to those in the United States in the 1960s, goes much deeper than simply the attitudes of individual police officers and different styles of policing in predominantly minority communities. Widespread discrimination, poverty, and high rates of unemployment in the inner cities were the locus of urban unrest, whereas distrust and dissatisfaction with the police service provided the spark. Nevertheless, as a consequence, the spotlight was thrown on the British police service resulting in the most serious adverse publicity and strain with the public than it had experienced in many decades.
The public image of the police service was further eroded by violent confrontations between the police and picketers during a number of notorious industrial disputes, especially the Miner’s Dispute in 1984-1985. In another notorious event, on April 15, 1989, a large and unruly crowd attending a soccer game at Hillsborough caused a disaster in which ninety-five persons lost their lives with many more injured. In this latter incident, the police were severely criticized for their crowd-control tactics and a lack of command control. The investigations that followed produced further negative publicity for the police service.
While all of these incidents (the riots, industrial disputes, and the soccer disaster) involved serious criticisms of the relationship between the police and the public in order-maintenance functions, the integrity of the service was still widely acclaimed for its efficiency and dedication in fighting crime. Much of this confidence eroded as a consequence of two major scandals involving the police and the activities of the Irish Republican Army. In the early 1970s, a series of pub bombings resulted in the deaths of twenty-six persons in Guilford and Birmingham. Four persons were convicted in the Guil-ford incident and six in the Birmingham bombing. Following a series of inquiries and appeals, the Guilford Four were released in 1989 and the Birmingham Six in 1991 on the grounds of tainted evidence. In each case, the convicted individuals served more than fourteen years in prison, based on evidence produced by alleged coerced confessions, uncorroborated testimony, and faulty scientific investigations. Once again, the public image of the police service was rocked, morale was seriously affected, and public inquiry into police behavior was initiated.
In sum, throughout the decade of the 1980s, the British police service faced greater adversity and met with more public criticism than it had faced in half a century. Public trust declined while the central government’s interest in policing increased. Graef (1990), who addressed many of these issues, concluded that ”Perhaps the management of Police Forces throughout the Western world was faltering, jaded, unimaginative, inert, and shy on accountability” (p. 456).
Interest on the part of central government was demonstrated through home office circulars, the Audit Commission, the Home Affairs Select Committee, and the Police Complaints Authority. These bodies demonstrated an ever-increasing interest in policing issues to ensure not only greater accountability but also that a more effective, efficient, and value-for-money service was provided. For example, the Home Affairs Select Committee (1989) commented that:
The Police Service of England and Wales commands considerable public resources which demand exceptional management skills if Forces are to respond to the needs of the public. The fundamental questions which arose during our enquiry concern whether the current system of training and career development for police officers based on a 19th-Century system and constrained by the separate organisation of each is adequate for the Police Service as it approaches the 21st Century.
Clearly, the concentration of interest in policing in the United Kingdom was more than just a passing phenomenon likely to disappear once the initial enthusiasm had worn off. It was symptomatic of a change in relationships among police, their masters, and their customers.
All of these issues necessitated a change in the role of police managers at all levels of the organization, and, in consequence, emphasis was placed on identifying the skills those officers require to undertake these new responsibilities. However, despite the efforts made in this regard, considerable debate took place within Parliament, the service, and the media on the quality of senior police managers. For example, Johnson (1990) indicated that events within the service encouraged the ordinary public to think that the police were not really able to provide a professional service and that radical proposals were needed to improve police management. On the other hand, Robertson (1990) reported that it would be easy to conclude that police executives were either disinterested in pursuing efficiency and general excellence or that they were simply ill equipped to administer large and complex organizations. To endorse either assumption would be patently unfair, because, although particular chief officers may suffer lethargy in one direction or the other, such a rash generalization would be inaccurate.
Nevertheless, in a world where the theory and practice of business administration and human resource management are undergoing constant refinement, it is essential that today’s police managers, particularly those at a senior and executive level, should be attuned to both private and public sector management developments to avoid accusations of inertia and stagnation.
It is against the background outlined above that central government implemented three important reviews, likely to greatly affect the police service and the criminal justice system. The first was the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice, which had the following extensive terms of reference:
To review the effectiveness of the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales in securing the conviction of those guilty of criminal offences and the acquittal of those who are innocent, having regard to the efficient use of resources.
In particular, they were asked to consider whether changes were needed regarding:
• The conduct of police investigations and their supervision by senior police officers
• The role of the prosecutor in supervising the gathering of evidence and deciding whether a case should proceed
• The right of silence for the accused
• The powers of the courts to direct proceedings
• The role of the Court of Appeal in considering new evidence on appeal
• The arrangements for considering and investigating allegations of miscarriages of justice when appeal rights have been exhausted
During the course of its work, the commission examined many aspects of the criminal justice system and in that regard received submissions from many interested individuals and bodies including the police service.
The second was the review undertaken by the local government commission into the future of local government. Its terms of reference were to examine all relevant issues and make recommendations concerning the future structure, boundaries, and electoral changes to particular local government areas. The review took the form of a rolling program and, in consequence, it took some time to cover the whole of the country. However, the results could have major implications for the police service. For example, if local authority boundary changes took place, it could result in the demise of many of the smaller forces, the amalgamation of others, and even the breaking up of some of the larger forces. The possibility of such changes was a fact recognized by Chief Constable O’Dowd in a speech at an international police conference in London on the future of the police service in England and Wales. He concluded that there would be fewer police forces. Many people believed that the restructuring of forces was high on the hidden political agenda.
The final review and probably the most important as far as the police service is concerned was that which the home secretary established in May 1992, under the chairmanship of Sir Patrick Sheey, to review police responsibilities and rewards. The inquiry team, which had to report by May 1993, comprised management consultants, academics, and industrialists who addressed a variety of policing issues including the following:
• The structure of forces to ensure that they meet the management needs of today’s police service
• The roles and responsibilities of the various ranks within the service
• The salaries of police officers to ensure the salary reflects the responsibilities of the particular individuals
• Rewards and sanctions for good and bad performance
• The conditions of service, work practices, and the improvement of professional standards
This review was quite clearly very wide in its scope and affected every officer in the country in one way or another.
Summary and Conclusions
Although the results of these three major commissions should produce significant changes in policing in England and Wales, the changes that occur must preserve both the traditional relationship between the British police service and its public and the internal morale and cohesion of the forces. As Reiner (1985) notes:
An adequate approach to police reform must be grounded in an understanding of police culture and practices, not a simplistic view that if only the right authorities were in charge all would be well. (p. 198)
Two particular areas of concern likely to arise as a consequence of these commissions are the reduction in the number of forces, which would produce larger forces, and the ”flattening” of the rank structure through the elimination of some current ranks. The former change was a likely outgrowth of the Local Government Commission and the latter from the deliberations of the Sheehy Commission.
Changes in the size of forces, which may alter the relationship between police and community, appear especially critical. Wells clearly anticipated these problems:
If the police organisation is, or appears to be, a centrally imposed anonymous body, as in many states of Europe and elsewhere, there will be little sense of the ”familia”: rather than intimate and integrated, the police will seem remote and out of sympathy with local needs. (Benyon and Solomos 1987, 81)
Further he noted:
Force policy and philosophy should be aimed at making ranks from commissioner to constable more obviously tied to community structures. . . . Any move which makes the police appear as impersonal, external to the community and, accordingly, anonymous must be resisted. (Benyon and Solomos 1987, 79)
Clearly, any forthcoming recommendations from the Local Government Commission, which would create larger forces responsible for wider geographic areas and containing greater population heterogeneity, must address these concerns.
Another set of concerns involving the internal cohesion of the forces was likely to emerge from the Sheehy Commission. One recommendation nearly certain to be made was the elimination of certain current ranks thus collapsing the rank structure. While one possible result of this change could produce a closer integration of command and line officers, thus improving communication in both directions, it would also raise issues of professional development and promotional opportunities that could affect the morale of younger officers. An article, which appeared in one of Great Britain’s national newspapers, took note of this concern:
The ranks of chief inspector, chief superintendent, deputy chief constable and possibly commander seem certain to disappear and the status of constables, sergeants and inspectors enhanced. . . . Abolition of chief inspectors and chief superintendent posts would seriously diminish promotion prospects for thousands of officers and create career bottlenecks. Existing chief inspectors and chief superintendents are also worried about what would happen to them. (Darby-shire 1993, 1)
Another controversial recommendation likely to occur was ”performance-based pay increments.” While the concept of reward for those officers who are effective in carrying out their duties and no reward for those who demonstrate subpar performance is attractive in theory, there are serious questions regarding the translation of theory into practice. What criteria are to be used to measure performance? What norm will be established for satisfactory performance so that those who fall above and below that norm can be recognized? Clearly these are crucial questions that beg easy answers. These questions are imbedded in the much larger question of the functions of policing, which has been the center of controversy since the establishment of professional police forces. A related issue is the fact that policing produces a qualitative product rather than one that is quantitative in nature. The president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, Mr. John Burrow, is quoted as saying:
We agree in principle with the concept, but our dilemma is that there are many aspects to performance-related pay. It clearly can’t be based on the number of arrests or traffic summonses issued. That would do more damage to public relations than the improvement in police performance it would achieve. (Darbyshire 1993, 1)
In conclusion, therefore, it is apparent that the police service in England and Wales had entered a period of great uncertainty by the end of the twentieth century. There is no doubt that changes will be extensive and wide ranging and will result in considerable conflict, particularly with respect to local accountability vis-a-vis centralized control, a change in the traditional relationship between the police and the communities that they serve, and changes in police practices and procedures brought about as a result of the changes in the criminal justice process as a whole.
Such conflict will hopefully be the catalyst to reorganize the service to meet the changing circumstances and the ever-increasing demands that are likely to be placed on it. Many managers at all levels will no doubt have difficulty coming to terms with the changes and will fall by the wayside, but for those willing to accept the challenge that will be forthcoming, the future should be very interesting and exciting.
