HC Deb 10 June 2003 vol 406 c824W
Dr. Pugh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many special constables are employed in each police area in England. [117772]

Mr. Bob Ainsworth

Police strength figures are collected by the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate. The latest available figures for Special Constables in England are for March 2002 and are shown in the table.

Police forces (England) Strength at 31 March 2002
Avon and Somerset 364
Bedfordshire 118
Cambridgeshire 207
Cheshire 191
Cleveland 85
Cumbria 102
Derbyshire 260
Devon and Cornwall 689
Dorset 253
Durham 134
Essex 381
Gloucestershire 154
Greater Manchester 338
Hampshire 444
Hertfordshire 206
Humberside 207
Kent 327
Lancashire 363
Leicestershire 143
Lincolnshire 155
City of London 36
Merseyside 468
Metropolitan police 680
Norfolk 244
Northamptonshire 177
Northumbria 256
North Yorkshire 185
Nottinghamshire 341
South Yorkshire 206
Staffordshire 384
Suffolk 308
Surrey 187
Sussex 306
Thames Valley 356
Warwickshire 209
West Mercia 339
West Midlands 598
West Yorkshire 349
Wiltshire 147