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Special constables usually work for a minimum of 16 hours per month (200hrs per year), although many do considerably more. Special constables may receive some expenses & allowances from the police service, including a £1000 "Recognition Award" in Scotland, but their work is otherwise voluntary and unpaid. Special constables have identical powers to their regular (full-time) colleagues, the only difference being a limited jurisdiction for Special Constables in England and Wales (see below). Special constables work alongside regular police officers, but have their own organisational structure and grading system (for the Thames Valley and Metrpolitan Special Constaulary structures, see This Page ) which varies from force to force. In England and Wales, every force's special constabulary is headed by a Commandant or Chief Officer, who are themselves special constables. Within Scotland, Special constables have no separate administrative structure, and are integrated with the regular constabulary. IDENTIFICATION Special constables tend to wear identical uniforms to their regular colleagues. In some constabularies, their shoulder number may be prefixed with a certain digit or they may have additional insignia on their Epaulette s which is usually a crown with the letters SC underneath it. Formerly, male special constables in English and Welsh forces did not wear helmets while on foot patrol, but in most forces they now do. Some forces may also issue special constables with a different hat badge than that of their regular counterparts. EQUIPMENT Special constables all carry the same personal protective equipment (PPE) as their regular counterparts, such as Handcuffs , Baton s, incapacitant spray ( CS Spray or a type of Pepper Spray ) and protective vests. POWERS & JURISTICTION Whether on or off duty, Special Constables have the same powers and responsibilities as their regular colleagues. Within Scotland, Special Constables are "members of a police force" as defined by the Police Scotland (Act) 1967 and have full powers throughout Scotland. Within England and Wales, however special constables only have the powers of a constable in the area for which they are appointed, and areas contiguous i.e. next to their own. There are three limited exceptions to this general rule:
This is set to change when the Police And Justice Bill , which is currently being considered in the House Of Commons , receives Royal Assent . It will amend section 30 of the Police Act 1996 , which currently limits the powers of a special constable to those areas listed above, allowing special constables to use their constabulary powers in forces throughout England and Wales. DUTIES As well as carrying out ordinary patrol duties, specials are often seen policing local events such as sports matches, carnivals, parades and Fête s. While this event policing is the stereotypical image of a special constable, it only represents one of the wide range of duties undertaken. Many special constables have taken the opportunity to join specialist teams within their constabularies such as marine support, dog units and roads policing. ACCEPTANCE Special constables used to be looked down upon by regular officers and resented, as they were seen as 'hobby bobbies', and not proper police officers, whose main role was seen as preventing 'real' regular officers from earning Overtime pay. Now, however, they have a much closer relationship with the regular police and are a welcome supplement to understaffed police forces. A sizeable proportion of regular officers have served as special constables before joining the regular force, and a period as a special constable is often recommended by police recruiters. Most police forces will appoint special constables from the age of 18. SEE ALSO
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