The Case Against ACPO - A Critical Look At The Association Of Chief Police Officers
The change in structure from a "band of volunteers" to a limited company allowed the organisation to employ staff, enter into contracts for accommodation and publish accounts. However, the current president has stated that he is uncomfortable with the current limited company arrangement and that he is willing to debate alternative structures.
A number of options have recently been considered for the status of ACPO, including charitable status, but that particular option has been discounted.
Chief constables and Commissioners are responsible for the direction and control of policing in their force areas. Although a national body and recognized by Government for consultation, ACPO has no powers of its own, nor has any mandate to instruct chief officers (What is the point of this- Every Chief Officer can make his own ACPO policy, even if the other 42 CC’s disagree with it). However, the organisation allows chief officers to form a national policy rather than replicate the work in each of their forces. For example, in 1981, following riots in twenty-seven British cities, including the 1980 St. Pauls riot and the 1981 Brixton riot, ACPO began preparation of the Public Order Manual of Tactical Operations and Related Matters. Police forces began training in its tactics late in 1983.
As of March 2010 there are 349 members of ACPO. ACPO receive a grant from the Govt of approx £18m per year from the home office.
This amount is paid from tax payers money to a private limited company.
If the Police Federation were to receive a similar grant per member based upon its membership (140,000) it would receive £7,220,630,372 (7Billion) from the home office. A staggering sum.
All Police Forces are now looking towards cost cutting. ACPO have set out in their document that Pre-enrolment learning is the way forward and that all future recruits to the service should pay their way. ACPO use a figure of £1200, which would save the forces some money, ACPOs figures need looking at because they do not seem to take account that Officers will be eligible for Independent patrol payments earlier in their service.
Therefore as the PNAC course is actually used as a tool to recruit ACC’s & DCC’s, future ACPO members (members of a Private Ltd Co), this should not be funded by the tax payer but like new recruits Chief Supts should actually fund this course themselves, a fugure of £10,000 would seem fair. The same argument can be used as for university students, i.e A longer working lifetime in the police service and greater potential earnings (chief officers pay) to justify the price of the course. This would then make the system fair.
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