Durham Constabulary
Encyclopedia
Durham Constabulary is the territorial police force
responsible for policing the non-metropolitan county of County Durham
and the unitary authority
of Darlington
. The force covers the 2,232 km² of the county
which has a resident population
of 595,308. It is one of the smaller forces of the forty-three territorial police
forces that service England
and Wales
. Durham is Home Office
force 11.
Durham Constabulary is divided into two areas:
Under proposals made by the Home Secretary
on February 6, 2006, it would merge with Northumbria Police
and Cleveland Police
to form a single strategic police force for the North East England
. In July 2006, the plans to merge Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria were scrapped.
Since 2010 Durham Constabulary and neighbouring Cleveland Police
have shared road policing
and firearms
teams through a joint Specialist Operations Unit. These officers are based at Cleveland's base at Wynyard Park Business Park and Durham's station in Spennymoor
. Durham and Cleveland Police have shared a Tactical Training Centre in Urlay Nook
, near Durham Tees Valley Airport
, since 2001.
In 1965, the force had an establishment of 1,763 and an actual strength of 1,626.
Under the Local Government Act 1972
, in 1974, the northern area of the force (including Gateshead, Sunderland and South Shields) became part of Northumbria Constabulary, with Hartlepool
and Stockton-on-Tees
in the south-east going to Cleveland Constabulary
On 26 October 2006, the force announced that a £10 million financial deficit means it may have to cut more than 300 police officers by 2009.
lists and commemorates all British police officers killed in the line of duty, and since its establishment in 1984 has erected over 38 memorials to some of those officers.
Since 1900 the following officers of Durham Constabulary were killed while attempting to prevent or stop a crime in progress:
Territorial police force
The phrase Territorial Police Force varies in precise meaning according to the country to which it is related, generally distinguishing a force whose area of responsibility is defined by sub-national boundaries from others which deal with the entire country or a restricted range of...
responsible for policing the non-metropolitan county of County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
and the unitary authority
Unitary authority
A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...
of Darlington
Darlington (borough)
Darlington is a local government district and borough in North East England. In 2008 it had a resident population of 100,500 It borders County Durham to the north and west, North Yorkshire to the south along the line of the River Tees, and Stockton-on-Tees to the east.-Council:Traditionally part of...
. The force covers the 2,232 km² of the county
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
which has a resident population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 595,308. It is one of the smaller forces of the forty-three territorial police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
forces that service England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. Durham is Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
force 11.
Durham Constabulary is divided into two areas:
- North Area, covering DurhamDurhamDurham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, Chester le Street and the former DerwentsideDerwentsideDerwentside was, from 1974 to 2009, a local government district in County Durham, England.The district took its name from the River Derwent, which made up part of the northern border of the district. Its main towns were Consett and Stanley, with the district council offices on Consett's Medomsley...
and EasingtonEasington (district)Easington was, from 1974 to 2009, a local government district in eastern County Durham, England. It contained the settlements of Easington, Seaham, Peterlee, Murton, Horden, Blackhall, Wingate and Castle Eden...
districts. - South Area covering DarlingtonDarlingtonDarlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, part of the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It lies on the small River Skerne, a tributary of the River Tees, not far from the main river. It is the main population centre in the borough, with a population of 97,838 as of 2001...
, Newton AycliffeNewton AycliffeNewton Aycliffe is a town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1947 under the New Towns Act of 1946, it is the oldest new town in the north of England.-Geography:...
, SedgefieldSedgefieldSedgefield is a small town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It has a population of 4,534.Sedgefield has attracted particular attention as the Member of Parliament for the wider Sedgefield constituency was the former Prime Minister Tony Blair; he was the area's MP from 1983 to 2008,...
, WeardaleWeardaleWeardale is a dale, or valley, of the east side of the Pennines in County Durham, in England. Large parts of Weardale fall within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - the second largest AONB in England and Wales. The upper valley is surrounded by high fells and heather grouse...
and TeesdaleTeesdaleTeesdale is a dale, or valley, of the east side of the Pennines in England. Large parts of Teesdale fall within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - the second largest AONB in England and Wales. The River Tees rises below Cross Fell, the highest hill in the Pennines, and its...
.
Under proposals made by the Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
on February 6, 2006, it would merge with Northumbria Police
Northumbria Police
Northumbria Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the areas of Northumberland and Tyne and Wear in North East England. The service is the sixth largest police force in England and Wales. The current Chief Constable is Sue Sim who was appointed by Northumbria Police...
and Cleveland Police
Cleveland Police
Cleveland Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the area of former county of Cleveland in north east England. The Cleveland Police area covers approximately and has a population of over 554,000....
to form a single strategic police force for the North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
. In July 2006, the plans to merge Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria were scrapped.
Since 2010 Durham Constabulary and neighbouring Cleveland Police
Cleveland Police
Cleveland Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the area of former county of Cleveland in north east England. The Cleveland Police area covers approximately and has a population of over 554,000....
have shared road policing
Road Policing Unit
The Road Policing Unit is the term for the Highway patrol within the majority of British police forces.-Responsibilities:RPUs work with the National Roads Policing Strategy, which has five strands:* Casualty reduction.* Counter-terrorism....
and firearms
Firearms unit
A firearms unit is a specialised, armed unit within each territorial police force in the United Kingdom. For the most part, the police forces of the United Kingdom are unarmed; however, all have firearms units to provide the police force with the capability to deal with armed criminals...
teams through a joint Specialist Operations Unit. These officers are based at Cleveland's base at Wynyard Park Business Park and Durham's station in Spennymoor
Spennymoor
Spennymoor is a town in County Durham, England. It stands above the Wear Valley approximately seven miles south of Durham. The town was founded over 160 years ago...
. Durham and Cleveland Police have shared a Tactical Training Centre in Urlay Nook
Urlay Nook
Urlay Nook is a village within the borough of Stockton-on-Tees and the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is situated a short distance to the west of Eaglescliffe. The village is dominated by the site of the former Elementis chromium chemicals plant and the Admiralty Ecology Site,...
, near Durham Tees Valley Airport
Durham Tees Valley Airport
Durham Tees Valley Airport is an international airport in north east England, located southeast of Darlington, about southwest of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. The airport serves County Durham and parts of North Yorkshire, and is in Middleton St George in the borough of Darlington...
, since 2001.
History
Durham Constabulary was one of the first county police forces to be set up, built in 1839. The force absorbed Durham City Police (formed in 1836) in 1921, Hartlepool Borough Police (formed in 1851) in 1947, Sunderland Borough Police (formed in 1837) in 1967, and Gateshead Borough Police (formed in 1836) and South Shields Borough Police (formed in 1839) in 1968, when it also lost some of its area to Teesside Constabulary.In 1965, the force had an establishment of 1,763 and an actual strength of 1,626.
Under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, in 1974, the northern area of the force (including Gateshead, Sunderland and South Shields) became part of Northumbria Constabulary, with Hartlepool
Hartlepool (borough)
Hartlepool is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of County Durham, north east England. In 2003 it had a resident population of 90,161. It borders the non-metropolitan county of County Durham to the north, Stockton-on-Tees to the south and Redcar and Cleveland to the south-east along the...
and Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
in the south-east going to Cleveland Constabulary
On 26 October 2006, the force announced that a £10 million financial deficit means it may have to cut more than 300 police officers by 2009.
Officers killed in the line of duty
The Police Memorial TrustPolice Memorial Trust
The Police Memorial Trust is a charitable organisation founded in 1984 and based in London. The trust's objective is to erect memorials to British police officers killed in the line of duty, at or near the spot where they died, thereby acting as a permanent reminder to the public of the sacrifice...
lists and commemorates all British police officers killed in the line of duty, and since its establishment in 1984 has erected over 38 memorials to some of those officers.
Since 1900 the following officers of Durham Constabulary were killed while attempting to prevent or stop a crime in progress:
- PC Keith Maddison, 1997 (collapsed and died while pursuing suspects from a stolen vehicle)
- DC James Brian Porter, 1982 (shot dead by two armed robbers, posthumously awarded the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct)
- PC Glenn Russel Corder, 1980 (his vehicle crashed during a police pursuitCar chaseA car chase is the vehicular pursuit of a suspect by law enforcement officers. Car chases are often captured on film and broadcast due to the availability of video footage recorded by police cars and police and media helicopters participating in the chase...
) - PC William Ralph Shiell, 1940 (shot dead by burglarsBurglaryBurglary is a crime, the essence of which is illicit entry into a building for the purposes of committing an offense. Usually that offense will be theft, but most jurisdictions specify others which fall within the ambit of burglary...
) - PC Matthew Walls Straughan, 1927 (shot dead by a suspect)
See also
- Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
- List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom
- Table of police forces in the United KingdomTable of police forces in the United KingdomThis table of police forces in the United Kingdom includes territorial police forces and special police forces. It does not include non-police law enforcement agencies or bodies of constables not constituted as police forces.-Table:-England and Wales:...