Assessing Police Establishments
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X5803100206 |
| Published date | 01 April 1958 |
| Date | 01 April 1958 |
| Author | Athelstan Popkess |
| Subject Matter | Article |
ASSESSING POLICE ESTABLISHMENTS 109
heat. still further raising the temperature. and the rate of heating
would become progressively greater. leading quickly into the chain
reaction of actual combustion.
***
The
writer wishes to express his thanks
to:
Mr. E. B. Parkes. M.Sc.•
F.R.I.e.. Director of this laboratory. for permission and encourage-
ment to publish this article; Mr. K. W. L. Steele. Chief Constable of
Somerset. and Mr. R. B. Matthews, Chief Constable of Cornwall, for
permission to use material from the files of their respective Forces;
the firm mentioned in Case 2, for their ready helpfulness in supplying
information; the Fire Research Organisation for their advice and
information freely given.
Assessing
Police
Establishments
By CAPTAIN
ATHELSTAN
POPKESS.
C.B.E.
Chief
Constable of
Nottingham
THE
current method of so largely fixing Police establishments on
night population has such obvious disadvantages that some other
and less exclusive yardstick should be devised. Unless some more
rational method is employed we shall always be in danger of having
considerable disparity as between the establishment of one area and
another. especially in areas in which large sections of the population
work in a borough but sleep in dormitories in the immediate vicinity
in the county.
The
borough. finding itself in such a situation. cannot
avoid always being at a disadvantage ill manpower to discharge its
responsibilities; for except at night. the population of such dormitories
is as much the borough police responsibility as that of the county. In
some instances boroughs are completely ringed by such dormitories.
yet receive no compensation in manpower whatsoever to deal with the
many problems arising therefrom. Again. there are large centres of
population contiguous to and having direct bearing on each other's
police problems. as is the case in certain West Riding boroughs.
Although this situation does not now apply in Nottingham with the
force that once it did. there can be little doubt that anomalies do exist
elsewhere. In the interest of police efficiency these should as far as
possible be removed.
Upon what should police responsibility be assessed? The problems
involved would appear to be principally concerned with:
(a) Population
(b) Crime
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