§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of police officers in(a) each basic command unit (b) each police force and (c) England are probationers; and what restrictions apply to their activities. [57448]
§ Mr. DenhamInformation on the number of probationer constables is collected annually by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary. The latest available is for 31 March 2001. The information is only collected at force level not for Basic Command Units. The table sets out the number of probationers and the proportion of strength for each force.
After attestation, within the first week of joining, a probationer constable has the same routine powers as any other police officer. However, a probationer constable would not be required to go on unsupervised patrol until certified fit for such a duty. This certification occurs as part of the formal training process after about 28 weeks of training.
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Probationers in England as at 31 March 2001 Force Probationers per cent Probationers of strength at 31 March 2001 Avon and Somerset 134.0 4.5 Bedfordshire 108.0 10.4 Cambridgeshire 143.0 11.0 Cheshire 117.0 5.8 City of London 29.0 4.1 Cleveland 123.0 8.6 Cumbria 47.0 4.5 Derbyshire 171.0 9.4 Devon and Cornwall 231.0 7.9 Dorset 137.0 10.1 Durham 120.0 7.5 Essex 242.0 8.4 Gloucestershire 140.0 12.0 Greater Manchester 224.0 3.2 Hampshire 290.0 8.4 Hertfordshire 229.0 11.9 Humberside 139.0 7.3 Kent 119.0 3.6 Lancashire 257.0 7.9 Leicestershire 187.0 9.2 Lincolnshire 139.0 11.6 Merseyside 206.0 5.0 Metropolitan Police 1,966.0 7.9
Force Probationers per cent Probationers of strength at 31 March 2001 Norfolk 115.0 8.1 Northamptonshire 91.0 7.9 Northumbria 303.0 7.9 North Yorkshire 73.0 5.6 Nottinghamshire 170.0 7.5 South Yorkshire 165.0 5.2 Staffordshire 80.0 3.8 Suffolk 72.0 6.4 Surrey 399.0 19.3 Sussex 224.0 7.8 Thames Valley 397.0 10.7 Warwickshire 85.0 9.2 West Mercia 78.0 4.0 West Midlands 766.0 10.3 West Yorkshire 262.0 5.4 Wiltshire 80.0 7.1 England 8,858.0 7.6