§ 37. Mr. Alex CarlileTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the use of special constables at weekends to police rural towns and villages.
§ Mr. Douglas HoggThe special constabulary is the main police reserve, which gives frequent and welcome support to the regular police service.
Deployment of the special constabulary throughout England and Wales is a matter for individual chief officers. Special constables are deployed at weekends to assist with such occasions as local carnivals and fetes; to assist with local crime prevention initiatives; and to support the regular police in a wide range of policing tasks.
It is common practice for the special constabulary to support regular officers at weekends in policing rural towns and villages, although specific figures for deployments are not held centrally.