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Community safety accreditation
schemes
Community safety accreditation schemes enable the
chief constable of a police force in the United Kingdom (Except Scotland)
to grant a limited range of police powers to employees of non-police
organisations bolstering community safety. Community safety accreditation
schemes were created under section 40 of the Police Reform Act 2002.
Individuals who have been granted these powers are known under the Act as
accredited persons.
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1 Powers
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2
Requirements for accreditation
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3 Examples
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4 Statistics
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5 External
links
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6 Notes
Contents
Powers
A chief constable may grant some or all of the
following powers to an accredited person as part of a community safety
accreditation scheme:
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The power to:
·
requires the
name and address of a person who has committed a criminal offence that
causes injury, alarm and distress to another person or damage or loss of
someone else's property, or to whom a penalty notice has been issued;
·
require the
name and address of a person acting in an anti-social manner;
·
require a
person to stop drinking in a designated public place and confiscate and
dispose of alcohol being consumed in a designated place;
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confiscate
alcohol from young people;
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confiscate
cigarettes and tobacco products from young people;
·
require the
removal of abandoned vehicles;
·
stop cyclists
on suspicion of riding on a footpath;
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stop a
vehicle for the purposes of an inspection;
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control
traffic for the purpose of escorting abnormal loads, for the purpose of
conducting a traffic survey, and for other purposes
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The power to
issue a fixed penalty notice:
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for riding a
bicycle on footpath;
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for dog
fouling;
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for
littering;
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for graffiti
and fly posting;
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The power to
issue a penalty notice for disorder for:
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the sale of
alcohol to person aged under 18;
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buying or
attempting to buy alcohol for consumption by a person aged under 18;
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consumption
of alcohol by a person aged under 18 or allowing such consumption;
·
delivery of
alcohol to a person aged under 18 or allowing such delivery;
·
possession by
a person aged under 18 of an adult-firework;
·
wasting
police time or giving a false report;
·
behaviour
likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress;
The powers available to individuals accredited
under a community safety accreditation scheme are similar to those of a
police community support officer (PCSO), although PCSOs are designated with
powers by the chief constable, as opposed to being accredited with them as
non-employees.
The Act also makes it a criminal offence to
assault, resist or obstruct an accredited person in the execution of their
duty, or impersonate an accredited person.
Requirements for accreditation
A person accredited under a community safety
accreditation scheme has to be assessed as suitable to exercise the powers,
trained by an Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) approved provider
in their use, and vetted to a national standard. The Act also requires that
the organisation employing an accredited person must be 'fit and proper'
and that they must have a satisfactory complaints procedure in place.
An accredited person remains under the control of
their normal employer, and is not managed or tasked by the police force.
Some accredited persons are tasked by their respective police force to
conduct patrols, attend incidents and gather intel, such as the community
protection officers of Nottingham City Council who work with
Nottinghamshire Police. These officers carry police Airwave radios and are
dispatched to incidents by the force control room.
Accredited Persons must wear a uniform approved
by the police when exercising their powers, and carry an ID card which also
shows the powers they are authorised to use. Some forces print the powers
on the back of the ID card, while others give the employees a separate
powers card specifically for this.
Examples
Common examples of employees granted powers under
a community safety accreditation scheme include security guards, community,
parish, park and dog wardens, trading standards officers, and housing
association staff.
In the Avon and Somerset Constabulary area, examples
of Schemes include:
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Community
wardens working for Teignbridge District Council,
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Security
guards employed by MacLellan International Ltd at The Mall Shopping Centre
at Cribbs Causeway near Bristol.
In the Essex Police area, employees of a number
of organisations have been accredited:
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Southend
Hospital
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Basildon
University Hospital
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Braintree
District Council
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Basildon
District Council Anti-Social Behaviour Wardens
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Maldon
District Council
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Colchester
Borough Council
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Chelmer
Housing
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Royals
Shopping Centre
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Southend on
sea borough council
In the South Yorkshire Police area, employees of
a number of organisations have been accredited:
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Doncaster
Metropolitan Borough Council
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Rotherham
Metropolitan Borough Council
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Barnsley
Metropolitan Borough Council
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Meadowhall
Shopping Centre Security
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Kingdom
Environmental Protections Services providing Environmental Health
enforcement on behalf of Barnsley MDC
In the Nottinghamshire Police area:
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Nottingham
City Council Community Protection Officers who work alongside
Nottinghamshire Police
Statistics
An audit published by the Home Office in August
2008[8] showed that 21 out of 42 police forces had granted Accredited
Person status to a total of 1,406 people in 95 organisations. Nineteen of
the employing organisations were private companies. Essex Police had
accredited the most people -- 291 individuals in 25 organisations.
The powers which had been granted most widely (by
more than 20 forces) were the power to seize alcohol from a person aged
under 18 in a designated place, the power to seize tobacco from a person
under 16, and the power to require the name and address of a person acting
in an anti-social manner.
External links
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Community
Safety Accreditation Schemes Good Practice Guidance, Home Office website
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Guidance
on Community Safety Accreditation Schemes, Association of Chief Police
Officers website
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