Security officers accredited by the police will have some powers of detention under the Police Reform Act 2002.
Security officers accredited by the police will have some powers of detention under the Police Reform Act 2002. Schedule 5 of the Act says that accredited officers can ask for someone’s name and address if they are acting in an anti-social way or if that officer has ‘reason to believe’ that someone has committed an offence. To refuse is an offence. Such officers have police powers to confiscate alcohol from young people, and from designated public places; and to escort wide loads. Section 40 of the Act gives chief constables powers to designate civilian support staff as Community Support Officers (CSOs) and, separately, to set up accreditation schemes for street wardens and security guards and similar staff, who will become Accredited Community Safety Officers (ACSOs). CSOs have similar powers to ACSOs to demand a suspect’s details: the powers differ when the suspect refuses – the CSO can ask the suspect to wait for up to 30 minutes for a police officer, or go along to a police station. If the suspect refuses, that is a summary offence.
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Handling complaints
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Police will have to make sure that the private security firms providing officers ‘maintain satisfactory arrangements for handling complaints’ – and police can charge fees for accrediting ACSOs. Under Section 43 of the Act, the British Transport Police Force can set up the railway equivalent of such accreditation schemes, for railway safety purposes, to combat trespassing. Chief constables will also be able to give police powers to civilian investigating, detention and escort officers – according to the Government, freeing police for front line duties and enabling forces to employ specialist investigators against fraud and IT crime. Home Office Minister John Denham said: ‘CSOs are not a replacement for fully trained police officers. They will play a different, but complimentary role to the record numbers of police officers we currently have in post. CSOs will be fully trained and tackle low-level crime such as burglaries, anti-social behaviour and petty crime as well as acting as the eyes and ears of the community. They will be a very visible and reassuring presence on our streets shortly.’ CSOs’ powers of detention will be piloted in six forces before being rolled out nationally.
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Streamlined
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Strengthened and streamlined procedures for obtaining Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) through the introduction of interim orders, extending the geographical area to which an Order can apply. British Transport Police and registered social landlords will be able to apply for orders, County Courts will be able to impose Orders, and an Order could be imposed on conviction for any offence where evidence of persistent anti-social behaviour has been presented to the court.
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In the Commons
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Police Reform Bill – hailed by the Home Office’s as part of its police reform programme – received Royal Assent on July 25. In the Commons on July 24, Simon Hughes for the Liberal Democrats raised doubts about how accredited support officers from the private sector are accountable – when they give out fines notices, for example – and whether they are covered by the police complaints system. While the Lib Dems’ fears were mainly about central Government interference in police forces, they did not oppose the Bill’s passage. For the exact cso powers see on the site.
