Police History

Welcome to our police history section. This section has been created to provide candidates with an overview of the history of the police force that they are applying to or thinking of applying to. Each article contained below examines the history of force and brings you up to date with current objectives and aims.

Some applicants may not see the need in reading up about the history of the force that are trying to join but if you can demonstrate why you want to join your force in particular will demonstrate a number of important qualities:

- Firstly you will show the police recruitment staff that you have considered the force you are applying and actually put the time and effort into your research which shows commitment and dedication.

- Secondly, you begin to make your application personal to you. So many candidates put down the same reasons for wanting to join the force namely to serve the community or give something back and these are both valid reasons but if part of your reasoning is specific to your force you will stand out from the other applicants. Maybe you like the approach to policing that this force has taken in recent years and would like to be a part of this development.

This section provides and overview of each force and if you can demonstrate knowledge particular to your force all the way through you application process then you will increase your chances of succeeding. To read more about a particular force, simply click on one of the blue links below:

List of UK Police Forces

• London Police Forces
  • City of London Police
  • Metropolitan Police Service
• South East Police Forces
  • Hampshire Constabulary
  • Kent Police
  • Surrey Police
  • Sussex
  • Thames Valley
• South West Police Forces
  • Avon & Somerset
  • Devon & Cornwall
  • Dorset Police
  • Gloucestershire Police
  • Wiltshire Police
• East Midlands Police Forces
  • Derbyshire Police
  • Leicestershire police force
  • Lincolnshire police
  • Northamptonshire
  • Nottinghamshire
• Eastern Police Forces
  • Bedfordshire Police
  • Cambridgeshire Constabulary
  • Essex Police
  • Hertfordshire
  • Norfolk
  • Suffolk
• West Midlands Police Forces
  • Staffordshire
  • Warwickshire
  • West Mercia
  • West Midlands
• North East Police Forces
  • Cleveland
  • Durham
  • Humberside
  • North Yorkshire
  • Northumbria
  • South Yorkshire
  • West Yorkshire
• North West Police Forces
  • Cheshire
  • Cumbria
  • Greater Manchester Police
  • Merseyside Police
  • Lancashire
  • Police Service of Northern Ireland
• Wales Police Forces
  • Dyfed Powys
  • Gwent Police
  • North Wales 
  • South Wales
• Scotland Police Forces
  • Central Scotland
  • Dumfries and Galloway
  • Fife Police
  • Grampian
  • Lothian and Borders Police Force
  • Northern
  • Strathclyde Police Force
  • Tayside

Related Police Forces

• British Transport Police
• Ministry of Defence Police
• The Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA)