The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), commonly known as the Metropolitan Police, Met Police, or the "Met", is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and crime prevention within Greater London. In addition, it is responsible for specialised tasks throughout the United Kingdom, such as dealing with counter-terrorism throughout the UK, and the protection of certain individuals, including the monarch, royal family, governmental officials, and other designated figures. It is also referred to as an eponym as "Scotland Yard" or "the Yard", after the location of its original headquarters in Great Scotland Yard, Whitehall, in the 19th century.Douglas Browne (1956) The Rise of Scotland Yard: A History of the Metropolitan Police The Met is presently headquartered at New Scotland Yard, in a building situated on the Victoria Embankment.

The main geographical area covered by the Met, the Metropolitan Police District, consists of the 32 London boroughs, and excludes the square mile of the City of London – a largely non-residential and financial district, overseen by the City of London Police. As the force responsible for the majority of the UK's capital, the Met has significant responsibilities and unique challenges, such as protecting 164 foreign embassies and High Commissions, policing London City and Heathrow airports, protecting the Palace of Westminster, and managing a higher volume of protests and events than any other British police force, with 3,500 such events in 2016.

The force, by officer numbers, ranks as the largest police force within the United Kingdom. Excluding its national roles, the Met oversees the eighth-smallest primary geographic area (police area) compared to other territorial police forces in the UK.

The force operates under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, directly accountable to the mayor of London, through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime and the Home Office. The post of commissioner was first held jointly by Sir Charles Rowan and Sir Richard Mayne, with Sir Mark Rowley currently holding the position since July 2022.

History

The Metropolitan Police Service was founded in 1829 by Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel under the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 and on 29 September of that year, the first constables of the service appeared on the streets of London. Ten years later, Metropolitan Police Act 1839 consolidated policing within London by expanding the Metropolitan Police District and either abolishing or amalgamating the various other law enforcement entities within London into the Metropolitan Police such as the Thames River Police and the Bow Street Runners.

Governance Since January 2012, the Mayor of London is responsible for the governance of the Metropolitan Police through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC). The mayor is able to appoint someone to act on his behalf. , the office-holder is the deputy mayor for policing and crime, Kaya Comer-Schwartz. The work of MOPAC is scrutinised by the Police and Crime Committee (also known as a police and crime panel) of the London Assembly. These structures were created by the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 and replaced the Metropolitan Police Authority-appointed board created in 2000 by Greater London Authority Act 1999.

Before 2000, the Metropolitan Police was under the authority of the Home Secretary, the only British territorial police force to be administered by central government. The Metropolitan Police Office (MPO), although based at Scotland Yard, was a department of the Home Office created in 1829 and was responsible for the force's day-to-day administration. Under the authority of the receiver, a civilian official who was equivalent in rank to the deputy commissioner and served as the force's chief financial officer, it was headed by a civilian secretary, who was equivalent in rank to the assistant commissioners.Obituary of Sir Richard Jackson, The Times, 18 February 1975

Police area and other forces

The area policed by the Metropolitan Police Service is known as the Metropolitan Police District (MPD). Since 2000, the MPD's boundaries have been identical to those of Greater London, covering the 32 London boroughs; the City of London (which is not a London borough) is a separate police area and is the responsibility of the City of London Police. Until 2017, the Met was organized into 32 Borough Operational Command Units directly aligned with the 32 boroughs; the MPD is now divided into 12 Basic Command Units (BCUs) made up of two, three or four boroughs.

The Ministry of Defence Police is responsible for policing of Ministry of Defence property throughout the United Kingdom, including its headquarters in Whitehall and other MoD establishments across the MPD.

The British Transport Police (BTP) is responsible for policing of the rail network in Great Britain, including London. Within London, it is also responsible for the policing of the London Underground, London Trams, the London Cable Car and the Docklands Light Railway.About us . Btp.police.uk. Retrieved on 6 December 2013.

The English part of the Royal Parks Constabulary, which patrolled a number of Greater London's major parks, was merged with the Metropolitan Police in 2004, and those parks are now policed by the Royal Parks Operational Command Unit. There is also a small park police force, the Kew Constabulary, responsible for the Royal Botanic Gardens, whose officers have full police powers within the park. A few local authorities maintain their own borough park constabularies, including Wandsworth Parks and Events Police, Kensington and Chelsea Parks Police, Havering Parks Constabulary and the Hampstead Heath Constabulary. All of these enjoy powers of arrest without warrant as constables; however, the officers of the last mentioned have full police powers, much like officers of the Metropolitan Police, on the heath, whereas the other parks' police primarily focus on by-law enforcement.

Metropolitan Police officers have legal jurisdiction throughout all of England and Wales, including areas that have their own special police forces, such as the Ministry of Defence, as do all police officers of territorial police forces. Officers also have limited powers in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Within the MPD, the Met will take over the investigation of any serious crime from the Ministry of Defence Police and to a lesser degree BTP, if it is deemed appropriate. Terrorist incidents and complex murder enquiries will almost always be investigated by the Met, with the assistance of any relevant specialist force, even if they are committed on Ministry of Defence or railway property. A minor incursion into the normal jurisdiction of territorial police officers in England and Wales is that Met officers involved in the protection duties of the Royal Family and other VIPs have full police powers in Scotland and Northern Ireland in connection with those duties.

Organisation and structure

The Metropolitan Police Service is organised into the following directorates:

Frontline Policing Met Operations Specialist Operations Professionalism Shared Support Services (part of Met headquarters)

Each is overseen by an assistant commissioner or, in the case of administrative departments, a director of police staff, which is the equivalent civilian staff grade. The management board is made up of the commissioner, deputy commissioner, assistant commissioners and directors.

Ranks

The Metropolitan Police Service uses the standard British police ranks, indicated by epaulettes, up to chief superintendent, but uniquely has five ranks above that level instead of the standard three: commander, deputy assistant commissioner, assistant commissioner, deputy commissioner and commissioner. All senior officers of the rank of Commander and above are chief police officers of NPCC (previously ACPO) rank.

The Met approved the use of name badges in October 2003, with new recruits wearing the Velcro badges from September 2004. The badge consists of the wearer's rank, followed by their surname. All officers are assigned a unique identification number, which includes a two-letter BCU (Basic Command Unit) code.

Following controversy over assaults by uniformed officers with concealed shoulder identification numbers during the G20 summit, Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said, "the public has a right to be able to identify any uniformed officer whilst performing their duty" by their shoulder identification numbers.

Insignia The Met uniformed officer rank structure, with epaulette design, is as follows (from highest to lowest):

The Met also has several active Volunteer Police Cadet units, which maintain their own internal rank structure. The Metropolitan Special Constabulary is a contingent of part-time volunteer police officers and is attached to most Borough Operational Command Units. The Metropolitan Special Constabulary Ranks are as follows (from lowest to highest):

The prefix "woman" in front of female officers' ranks has been obsolete since 1999. Members of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) up to and including the rank of chief superintendent prefix their ranks with "detective". Detective ranks are equivalent in rank to their uniform counterparts. Other departments, such as Special Branch and Child Protection, award non-detectives "branch detective" status, allowing them to use the "Detective" prefix. None of these detective ranks confer on the holder any extra pay or supervisory authority compared to their uniformed colleagues.

Workforce The following is the current released workforce data for the ranks. The chief officers rank covers all senior ranks as well as special constables covering all special constable ranks.

Arms

+ BadgeA roundel azure, thereon the Royal Cypher of His Majesty King Charles the Third argent within a circlet azure fimbriated and inscribed with words 'Metropolitan Police' in letters argent, the whole upon a star of eight major and fifty-six lesser points argent, ensigned by the Royal Crown proper.

Police officers

The Metropolitan Police Service includes full-time, paid officers known as 'regulars', and part-time, voluntary officers from the Metropolitan Special Constabulary. Both regulars and specials enjoy full police powers, wear the same uniform, and carry the same kit. As elsewhere in the UK, "regulars" are not employees, but rather Crown servants, and holders of the office of constable.

Historical numbers 1852: 5,625 1866: 6,839 1877: 10,336^ 1887: 14,191 1912: 20,529Raymond B. Fosdick, European Police Systems, 1915. Figures at 31 December 1912, including 33 superintendents, 607 chief inspectors and inspectors, 2,747 sergeants and 17,142 constables. 1929: 19,290 1938: 18,511 1944: 17,976* 1952: 16,400Report of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for the Year 1952. Included 35 chief superintendents (including one woman), 12 detective chief superintendents, 62 superintendents (including one woman), 16 detective superintendents, 128 chief inspectors (including five women), 64 detective chief inspectors (including one woman), 20 station inspectors, 465 inspectors (including four women), 140 detective inspectors (including one woman), 441 station sergeants, 202 1st class detective sergeants, 1,834 sergeants (including 32 women), 414 2nd class detective sergeants (including six women), 11,951 constables (including 310 women), and 615 detective constables (including 27 women). The official establishment was 20,045. 1965: 18,016The Thin Blue Line, Police Council for Great Britain Staff Side Claim for Undermanning Supplements, 1965 1984: 27,000 (approximate)Hansard , 26 February 1996 2001: 25,000 (approximate)Hansard , 23 April 2001. London population at the time was 7,172,000. 2003: 28,000 (approximate) 2004: 31,000 (approximate)GLA press release , 11 March 2003 2009: 32,543 (excluding 2,622 special constables)