The Kew Constabulary (formerly the Royal Botanic Gardens Constabulary) is a small, specialised

constabulary Constabulary may have several definitions: *A civil, non-paramilitary (police) force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in the United Kingdom, in which all county police forces once bore the title (and som ...

responsible for policing the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in

Richmond-upon-Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in southwest London forms part of Outer London and is the only London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas amalgamated under the London ...

, England. The constabulary consists of a sworn security manager/chief officer, two section leaders/sergeants, eight constables and four non-sworn operations team members (responsible for CCTV / Control Room / Pass Office). , the force had 20 members of staff.

History

The Kew Constables are attested under section 3 of the Parks Regulation Act 1872. Such constables have "in addition to any powers and immunities specially conferred on him by this Act, shall, within the limits of the park of which he is park constable, have all such powers, privileges, and immunities, and be liable to all such duties and responsibilities, as any police constable has within the

police area A police area is the area for which a territorial police force in the United Kingdom is responsible for policing. Every location in the United Kingdom has a designated territorial police force with statutory responsibility for providing pol ...

in which such park is situated". As a result, constables of this very small constabulary have the powers of constables of the Metropolitan Police within the land belonging to the Royal Botanic Gardens in addition to those powers possessed as a Kew Constable but without being sworn as constables under the legislation applicable to the Metropolitan Police. These constables rarely use their police powers and generally perform a patrol and ranger service. Kew Gardens is situated within the

Metropolitan Police District The Metropolitan Police District (MPD) is the police area which is policed by the Metropolitan Police Service in London. It currently consists of the Greater London region, excluding the City of London. The Metropolitan Police District was creat ...

, and as such, the

Metropolitan Police Service The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

is the police force with statutory responsibility for providing policing services to Kew Gardens with any substantial, serious or major policing incidents always being referred to the MPS. The Kew Constabulary have no power to instigate proceedings for an offence committed within their jurisdiction via the

Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 The Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (c. 23) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. Its main effects were to establish the Crown Prosecution Service The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conductin ...

. Kew Constabulary do however provide an enhanced policing patrol presence within the parks which the MPS would be unable to provide due to other wider commitments and a good working relationship is maintained between the MPS and the Kew constables. The Kew Constabulary are attested under the Parks Regulations 1872, which was amended by the Parks Regulations (Amendment) Act 1974. This amendment included the provision to allow for the appointment of Parks Constables for the parks included within the original legislation. The Parks Regulations 1872 included the provision for appointing Park Keepers, who had the full powers of a police constable of the local police force within the relevant park. However, the Park Keepers were faced with increased hostility and it was felt necessary to give them the full status of a constable, even though they would not have any increased powers. A working party was formed by the Department of Environment and they visited the Liverpool Parks Police in 1872 to examine their model of policing parks. The amended Parks Regulations 1872 gives Kew Constabulary police powers within all the parks to which the legislation applies. Whilst there is nothing to suggest that Kew Constabulary Police Officers would ever find themselves exercising their police powers in another park, this legislative quirk remains nonetheless. Many parks listed within the legislation have been transferred from the control of the Crown and government departments to local authorities, whereby the legislation is believed to no longer apply. This includes, for example,

Battersea Park Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies marshland rec ...

and Victoria Park. Nonetheless, during more recent years the Kew Constabulary have theoretically possessed police powers in

Parliament Square Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and it contai ...

until it was transferred to the control of the

Greater London Authority The Greater London Authority (GLA), colloquially known by the metonym "City Hall", is the devolved regional governance body of Greater London. It consists of two political branches: the executive Mayoralty (currently led by Sadiq Khan) and t ...

by the

Greater London Authority Act 1999 The Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29) is the Act of Parliament that established the Greater London Authority, the London Assembly and the Mayor of London. Background The Act was brought in after a referendum was held under the Great ...

. Although the Kew Constabulary was a separate organisation from the Royal Parks Constabulary, it had police powers in the Royal Parks until the original Parks Regulations 1872 were amended by Section 162 of the

Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 The Serious Organized Crime and Police Act 2005 (c.15) (often abbreviated to SOCPA or SOCAP) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom aimed primarily at creating the Serious Organised Crime Agency. It also significantly extended and s ...

References

{{coord, 51, 28.5, N, 0, 17.5, W, type:city, display=title Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Park police forces of London 1845 establishments in England

History

See also

References