List of defunct law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom explained

Due to various parliamentary Acts the numbers of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom has varied drastically since the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 set up the first modern police force in London.

There are currently over 60 law enforcement agencies operating in the United Kingdom. See List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories for these.

For former (non-police) law enforcement agencies, see . For defunct police forces, see

England and Wales police forces

Abolished before 1889

The County Police Act 1840 allowed for borough police forces to voluntarily amalgamate with county constabularies.

Abolished under the Local Government Act 1888

The Act, which came into force in 1889 passed control of county constabularies to standing joint committees of county councillors and magistrates, and merged smaller borough police forces (where the town had a population of less than 10,000) with the county police.

Abolished 1890–1942

Abolished under the Defence (Amalgamation of Police Forces) Regulations 1942

NB – Some were re-constituted after the war but then abolished in 1946.

Abolished under the Police Act 1946

Non-county borough forces
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Bedfordshire Constabulary
to Lincolnshire Constabulary
to Carmarthenshire Constabulary
to Buckinghamshire Constabulary
to Derbyshire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Essex Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Derbyshire Constabulary
to Lincolnshire Constabulary
to Durham Constabulary
to Herefordshire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Cumberland and Westmorland Constabulary
to Worcestershire Constabulary
to Norfolk Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Warwickshire Constabulary
to Bedfordshire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Glamorgan Constabulary
to Nottinghamshire Constabulary
to Staffordshire Constabulary
to Peterborough Combined Police Force
to Cornwall County Constabulary
to Hertfordshire Constabulary
to North Riding Constabulary
to Shropshire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Berkshire Constabulary
County borough forces
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Kent Constabulary
County forces
to Gwynedd Constabulary
to Mid Wales Constabulary
to Gwynedd Constabulary
to Carmarthenshire and Cardiganshire Constabulary
to Carmarthenshire and Cardiganshire Constabulary
to Hampshire Constabulary
to Gwynedd Constabulary
to Mid Wales Constabulary
to Mid Wales Constabulary
to Leicestershire and Rutland Constabulary
to Peterborough Combined Police Force
to Leicestershire and Rutland Constabulary

Abolished under the Police Act 1964

Borough forces
to Somerset and Bath Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Liverpool and Bootle Constabulary
to Dorset and Bournemouth Constabulary
to Sussex Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Mid Anglia Constabulary
to South Wales Police
to Cumbria Constabulary
to Warwickshire and Coventry Constabulary
to Derby County and Borough Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to Sussex Constabulary
to Devon and Exeter Constabulary
to Durham Constabulary
to Norfolk Constabulary
to Lincolnshire Constabulary
to Sussex Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to Suffolk Constabulary
to Leicester and Rutland Constabulary
to Lincolnshire Constabulary
to Liverpool and Bootle Constabulary
to Manchester and Salford Police
to South Wales Constabulary
to Teesside
to Northumberland Constabulary
to Gwent Police
to Northampton and County Constabulary
to Norfolk Constabulary
to Nottinghamshire Combined Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Thames Valley Constabulary
to Devon and Cornwall Constabulary
to Hampshire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Thames Valley Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Sheffield and Rotherham Constabulary
to Manchester and Salford Police
to Sheffield and Rotherham Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent Constabulary
to Hampshire Constabulary
to Essex and Southend-on-Sea Joint Constabulary
to Durham Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Durham Constabulary
to South Wales Constabulary
to Northumberland Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to Cheshire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to Lancashire Constabulary
to West Mercia Constabulary
to York and North East Yorkshire Police
County/combined forces
to Bedfordshire and Luton Constabulary
to Thames Valley Constabulary
to Thames Valley Constabulary
to Dyfed-Powys Constabulary
to Devon and Cornwall Constabulary
to Cumbria Constabulary
to Derby County and Borough Constabulary
to Devon and Exeter Constabulary
to Devon and Cornwall Constabulary
to Dorset and Bournemouth Constabulary
to York and North East Yorkshire Police
to Suffolk Constabulary
to Sussex Constabulary
to Essex and Southend-on-Sea Joint Constabulary
to South Wales Constabulary
to West Mercia Constabulary
to Mid Anglia Constabulary
to Mid Anglia Constabulary
to Leicester and Rutland Constabulary
to Dyfed-Powys Constabulary
to Gwent Constabulary
to York and North East Yorkshire Police
to Northampton and County Constabulary
to Northumberland Constabulary
to Nottinghamshire Combined Constabulary
to Thames Valley Constabulary
to West Mercia Constabulary
to Somerset and Bath Constabulary
to Staffordshire County and Stoke-on-Trent Constabulary
to West Yorkshire Constabulary
to Suffolk Constabulary
to Sussex Constabulary
to Warwickshire and Coventry Constabulary
to West Mercia Constabulary

Abolished by the Local Government Act 1972

All territorial police forces in England and Wales (except the Metropolitan Police and City of London Police) were abolished and reconstituted at midnight on 31 March 1974/1 April 1974. This list shows the ones that existed then and their fate (ignoring minor transfers).

reconstituted as Bedfordshire Police
merged into West Midlands Police
merged into West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police
merged into Avon and Somerset Constabulary
reconstituted, areas transferred to Merseyside Police and Greater Manchester Police
reconstituted
reconstituted as Derbyshire Constabulary
reconstituted
reconstituted, areas transferred to Cleveland Constabulary and Northumbria Police
reconstituted
reconstituted as Essex Police
reconstituted, areas transferred to Avon and Somerset Constabulary
reconstituted
reconstituted as North Wales Police
reconstituted, areas transferred to Dorset Police
reconstituted
reconstituted
merged into Humberside Police
reconstituted, areas transferred to Merseyside Police, Greater Manchester Police, Cheshire Constabulary and Cumbria Constabulary
merged into West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police
reconstituted as Leicestershire Constabulary
reconstituted, areas transferred to Humberside Police
merged into Merseyside Police
merged into Greater Manchester Police
reconstituted as Cambridgeshire Constabulary
reconstituted
reconstituted as Northamptonshire Constabulary
merged into Northumbria Police
reconstituted as Nottinghamshire Police
merged into South Yorkshire Police
merged into Avon and Somerset Constabulary
reconstituted
reconstituted as Staffordshire Police
reconstituted
reconstituted
reconstituted
merged into Cleveland Constabulary
reconstituted
split between Warwickshire Constabulary and West Midlands Police
reconstituted
merged into West Midlands Police
split mainly between West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police, South Yorkshire Police and North Yorkshire Police
reconstituted
split between North Yorkshire Police, Humberside Police, Durham Constabulary and Cleveland Constabulary.[1]

Irish police forces

The partition of Ireland under the terms of the Government of Ireland Act 1920 and the subsequent independence of the Irish Free State in 1922 led to the replacement of the Royal Irish Constabulary with the Garda Síochána (in the Free State, later Éire or Republic of Ireland) and by the Royal Ulster Constabulary (in Northern Ireland). Defunct police forces in Ireland:

Scottish police forces

Each police burgh had a police force originally, although many merged in the 19th century. The gradual process of amalgamation culminated with the creation of a single Police Service of Scotland in 2013.

Abolished 1930The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 merged two pairs of county constabularies.
Abolished 1931–1946
Abolished under the Police (Scotland) Act 1946:
Abolished 1950s
Abolished 1960s
Abolished 1975The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 created new police forces based on the new regions and island areas from 16 May 1975.
Abolished 2013An Act of the Scottish Parliament, the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012, created a single Police Service of Scotland – better known as Police Scotland – and a single Scottish Fire and Rescue Service with effect from 1 April 2013. (The functions of the British Transport Police, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary and the Ministry of Defence Police within Scotland were not affected).

Railway police forces

From the archives of the British Transport Police:

Docks and port police forces

Canal/river police forces

Airport police forces

See main article: Airport policing in the United Kingdom.

Other police forces

Churches

Departmental constabularies

Merged to form the Admiralty Constabulary in 1949.

Merged to form the Ministry of Defence Police in 1974.

Markets

Miscellaneous

National

Parks

London

Non-London

Non-police law enforcement agencies

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: British Police History - York and North East Yorkshire Police. www.british-police-history.uk. 21 August 2017.
  2. Web site: British Police History. 2020-11-12. british-police-history.uk.
  3. Web site: Isle of Man Guide – Aviation security officers sworn in. Ltd.. Maxima Systems. www.iomguide.com. 2016-06-18.

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