Police Reform
Police Authority Membership and Structure (Outside Greater London)
Police authorities are made up of local people, both councillors and members of the community. They work to ensure your police force provides the best service for you.
Membership of police authorities in England and Wales (outside of the London) is governed by the Police Authority Regulations 2008. (new window)
The Metropolitan Police Authority and the City of London Police authority are governed by different legislation. More information on this can be found on the London Police Authorities Page.
With the exceptions of Devon and Cornwall, Greater Manchester, Thames Valley, Dyfed Powys and South Wales, police authorities outside of London have seventeen members. Nine of those members are councillor members and eight are independent members.
Devon and Cornwall, Greater Manchester, Thames Valley, Dyfed Powys and South Wales Police Authority each have nineteen members, of which ten are councillors and nine are independent members.
Each year the police authority appoints a chairman. They may also appoint one or more vice chairmen from their members.
The most recent statistics available show about 10% of all police authority members are from minority ethnic backgrounds, and about a third are women.
Councillor Members
Councillor members of the Cumbria, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Suffolk and Warwickshire Police Authorities are appointed by the County Council from among their members. Members must be appointed in such a way that, as far as is practical,the political balance of the authority reflects that of the council.
For all other police authorities, the top tier councils that cover that police area form a joint committee. The makeup of this committee varies between police areas, but must be agreed by all councils. Where there is a dispute regarding the membership of the joint committee, the Home Secretary makes the final decision on composition.
The proportion of police authority members appointed from any given party by joint committees must, as much as practical, be the same as the councils in the police area taken as a whole.
The terms of office for a councillor member of an authority are decided by the police authority, but cannot exceed four years. There is no limit to the maximum number of terms a councillor member can serve.
Independent Members
Independent members are people who live or work in the police authority area, and are appointed by the authority from a shortlist compiled by a selection panel (see below for more details of selection panels). Independent members must be over eighteen and have lived or worked in the area for at least 12 months. To ensure their independence they may not be a police officer, an employee of the police force or police authority or be a county, district or borough councillor.
The authority decides the term of office of an independent member. The term of an independent member may not exceed four years and a member cannot serve more than two terms without the consent of the Home Secretary.
Independent Member Selection Panels
The independent members of a police authority are appointed by a five member selection panel. Three of these members are appointed by the police authority and one is appointed by the Home Secretary. The fifth member, or independent assessor, is appointed by the other four members from a list compiled by the Home Secretary. For candidates to be entered onto the list they must have demonstrated to the Home Secretary that they have relevant high-level experience and training, especially regarding diversity issues.
As well as compiling the shortlist, the selection panel have oversight of the whole recruitment process, including the advertising and application forms.
A shortlist compiled by a selection panel must include two candidates for each vacancy.
If you are interested in getting involved with your local police authority, see our Getting Involved page.
Lay Justice Members
Until October 2008, every police authority had to appoint 3 members from the local magistrate’s bench through a special process. The Police Authority Regulations 2008 (new window) removed this requirement, although it is a requirement that at least one independent member be a lay justice (magistrate).
