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Lothian and Borders Police was the
territorial police force A territorial police force is a police service that is responsible for an area defined by sub-national boundaries, distinguished from other police services which deal with the entire country or a type of crime. In countries organized as federations, ...
for the
Scottish council areas
For local government purposes, Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas" ( gd, comhairlean), which are all governed by single-tier authorities designated as "councils". They have the option under the Local Government (Ga ...
of the
City of Edinburgh
The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the city of Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland.
In its current form, the counci ...
,
East Lothian
East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921.
In 1975, the histo ...
,
Midlothian
Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...
,
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...
and
West Lothian
West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...
between 1975 and 2013. The force's headquarters were in Fettes Avenue,
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
.
Lothian and Borders Police was formed on 16 May 1975 by an amalgamation of
Berwick, Roxburgh and Selkirk Constabulary, Edinburgh City Police and The Lothians and Peebles Constabulary.
The force had 2,905 officers and 1,384 support staff as of March 2008. The force's last
Chief Constable was
David Strang who replaced
Paddy Tomkins
Patrick Tomkins QPM was appointed HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland by Royal Warrant in March 2007 and retired from the post in April 2009. He was formerly the Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police, which he joined in 2002 a ...
on 29 March 2007.
An
Act of the Scottish Parliament
An Act of the Scottish Parliament ( gd, Achd PÃ rlamaid na h-Alba) is primary legislation made by the Scottish Parliament. The power to create Acts was conferred to the Parliament by section 28 of the Scotland Act 1998 following the successfu ...
, the
Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012
The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament. This legislation merged the eight separate police forces and fire and rescue services in Scotland, plus several central agencies, into single agencies covering t ...
, created a single Police Service of Scotland—known as
Police Scotland
Police Scotland ( gd, Poileas Alba), officially the Police Service of Scotland (), is the national police force of Scotland. It was formed in 2013, through the merging of eight regional police forces in Scotland, as well as the specialist service ...
—with effect from 1 April 2013. This merged the eight former regional police forces in Scotland (including Lothian & Borders Police), together with the
Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency
The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) was a special police force of Scotland responsible for disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime groups.
The Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency (SDEA) was established on 1 April 2001 ...
, into a single service covering the whole of Scotland. Police Scotland has its headquarters at the
Scottish Police College
The Scottish Police College is based at Tulliallan Castle, in Kincardine.
Since 1 April 2013, the college has been under the control of Police Scotland.
In addition to probationer training, the college provides training in various specialist a ...
at
Tulliallan
Tulliallan (Gaelic ''tulach-aluinn'', 'Beautiful knoll') was an estate in Perthshire, Scotland, near to Kincardine, and a parish.
The Blackadder lairds of Tulliallan, a branch of the Blackadder border clan, wielded considerable power in the 15 ...
in
Fife
Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...
.
Divisions
The Lothian and Borders Police area stretched from
Blackridge in the west to
Newcastleton
Newcastleton, also called Copshaw Holm, is a village in Liddesdale, the Scottish Borders, a few miles from the border with England, on the Liddel Water. It is within the county of Roxburghshire. It is the site of Hermitage Castle.
Newcastleton ...
in the south. It was split into four territorial divisions, and several other non-territorial divisions for specialist and administrative roles.
Territorial Divisions
A Division covered the
City of Edinburgh
The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the city of Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland.
In its current form, the counci ...
, and was created in 2002 following the amalgamation of the City of Edinburgh's three previous divisions. It was the largest territorial division in terms of manpower and population. Its headquarters were St Leonards Police Station.
E Division covered
East Lothian
East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921.
In 1975, the histo ...
and
Midlothian
Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...
, stretching from the Edinburgh City Bypass to
Dunbar
Dunbar () is a town on the North Sea coast in East Lothian in the south-east of Scotland, approximately east of Edinburgh and from the English border north of Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Dunbar is a former royal burgh, and gave its name to an ecc ...
in the east. Its headquarters were in
Dalkeith
Dalkeith ( ; gd, Dail Cheith, IPA: ˆt̪alˈçe is a town in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River Esk. It was granted a burgh of barony in 1401 and a burgh of regality in 1540. The settlement of Dalkeith grew southwestwards from its 12th-cent ...
.
F Division covered
West Lothian
West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...
with its headquarters in
Livingston
Livingston may refer to:
Businesses
* Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010)
* Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline
* Livingston International, a North American custom ...
. The division's officers were sometimes referred to as "F Troop", although this was regarded as offensive as "
F Troop
''F Troop'' is a satirical American television sitcom Western about U.S. soldiers and Native Americans in the Wild West during the 1860s that originally aired for two seasons on ABC. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965, and ...
" was originally a comedy set in the old west of America (first shown 14 September 1965) that followed a group of misfit cavalrymen in the U.S. Army.
G Division was the largest territorial division in Lothian and Borders Police and covered the
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...
. It was approximately twice the size of all the other divisions combined, bordering
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in the south. It covered a predominantly rural area featuring rolling country side and isolated population areas. Its headquarters were in
Hawick
Hawick ( ; sco, Haaick; gd, Hamhaig) is a town in the Scottish Borders council area and historic county of Roxburghshire in the east Southern Uplands of Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-south-east of Selkirk. It is one of ...
.
Non-territorial Divisions
C Division (Corporate Services) comprised such departments as Corporate Communications, Safer Communities, Complaints and Conduct and Business Improvement.
H Division was concerned with Personnel and Human Resources functions.
J Division was concerned with Secondments.
N Division was styled the "Criminal Justice Administration Department".
O Division (Operations) provided specialist operations support to the force. It was predominantly made up of the Roads Policing Units (traffic) which were based at the headquarters of each division. They also provided specialist Firearms and Public Order (Riot Police) support to all divisions. Also within O Division were the forces Dog Handlers. O Division also included The Force Communications Centre (FCC).
P Division was responsible for training and career development. Training of probationary constables was carried out jointly by the
Scottish Police College
The Scottish Police College is based at Tulliallan Castle, in Kincardine.
Since 1 April 2013, the college has been under the control of Police Scotland.
In addition to probationer training, the college provides training in various specialist a ...
based at
Tulliallan Castle
Tulliallan Castle is a large house in Kincardine, Fife, Scotland. It is the second structure to have the name, and is a mixture of Gothic and Italian style architecture set amid some of parkland just north of where the Kincardine Bridge spans t ...
, "on the job" in the force area. Officers transferring from other Scottish forces were not required to attend the college, unlike those transferring from the rest of the United Kingdom, who were required to attend a conversion course to allow for adjustment to Scots law.
S Division was responsible for the financial management of the force.
X Division provided investigative support to the entire force. While detectives may have been allocated to assist other divisions as their main role as detectives, they could be pooled to provide assistance whether their specialist skills are required. Also known as the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) they were the detectives of the force and investigated major crimes as well as everyday crimes such as housebreaking.
Z Division was styled the "Central Services Department".
Chief Constables
Chief Constables were:
*1975–1983 : Sir
John Henry Orr
Sir John Henry Orr (13 June 1918 – 26 September 1995) was a Scottish police officer and was the first Chief Constable of the Lothian and Borders Police. He was also a former Scotland international rugby union player.
Police career
Orr bec ...
*1983–1996 : Sir
William Sutherland
*1996–2002 : Sir
Roy Cameron
*2002–2007 :
Paddy Tomkins
Patrick Tomkins QPM was appointed HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland by Royal Warrant in March 2007 and retired from the post in April 2009. He was formerly the Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police, which he joined in 2002 a ...
*2007–2013 :
David Strang
See also
*
Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) was the professional voice of police leadership ( Chief Constables, Deputy Chief Constables and Assistant Chief Constables) in Scotland, including the Assistant Chief Constable in the Br ...
*
Fettesgate
*
Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency
The Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) was a special police force of Scotland responsible for disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime groups.
The Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency (SDEA) was established on 1 April 2001 ...
*
Scottish Police College
The Scottish Police College is based at Tulliallan Castle, in Kincardine.
Since 1 April 2013, the college has been under the control of Police Scotland.
In addition to probationer training, the college provides training in various specialist a ...
*
Lothian & Borders Police Pipe Band
*
Police Scotland
Police Scotland ( gd, Poileas Alba), officially the Police Service of Scotland (), is the national police force of Scotland. It was formed in 2013, through the merging of eight regional police forces in Scotland, as well as the specialist service ...
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lothian And Borders Police
Government agencies established in 1975
Defunct police forces of Scotland
Organisations based in the Scottish Borders
Lothian
Government-related organisations based in Edinburgh
1975 establishments in Scotland
Government agencies disestablished in 2013
2013 disestablishments in Scotland