Chester Cathedral Constables were a small team of
cathedral constables who maintained order and security in and around the precincts of
Chester Cathedral
Chester Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral and the mother church of the Diocese of Chester. It is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint ...
. Their duties were derived from the medieval period when
British common law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. The judiciary is independent, and legal principles like fairness, equality befor ...
gave custodians the powers to protect religious buildings and their communities from harm, theft, and violence. In January 2021, after more than 700 years of service, the constables were stepped down.
With the demise of the Chester Cathedral Constables, the remaining three cathedrals in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to retain them are
Canterbury Cathedral Close Constables,
York Minster Police, and
Liverpool Cathedral Constables.
Modern history
In December 2011, Chester Cathedral appointed a head constable to lead a new team of volunteer constables to maintain security, and to keep good order within the cathedral and its precincts.
The two longest serving were assisted with training in 2015 by the local territorial force in Cheshire. Although volunteers, they were not appointed as
special constable as they worked for a
private constabulary.
In August and October 2017 they were joined by three former Special Constables, leaving Chester Cathedral Constabulary with five serving cathedral constables.
In June 2017 a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by Chester Cathedral Constables (represented by Inspector Chris Jones) and
Cheshire Constabulary
Cheshire Constabulary is the territorial police force responsible for policing the ceremonial county of Cheshire in North West England, comprising the unitary authority, unitary authorities of Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Borough of ...
(represented by the Chief Constable). Under the terms of the MoU the territorial police force acknowledged the right of sworn cathedral constables to carry rigid batons and handcuffs and carry out arrests. The cathedral constables agreed to deliver all arrested persons to Cheshire Constabulary for processing and custody. The MoU also acknowledged that the cathedral constables would be the initial point of contact for all policing matters on cathedral Dean & Chapter property, passing offences of a serious nature to Cheshire Police.
In common with other members of the Cathedral Constables Association (CCA), the former positions of Head Constable and Deputy Head Constable were replaced with the ranks of Inspector and Sergeant.
Abolition
in January 2022, Chester abolished the Chester Cathedral Constables. The remaining seven constables were transferred to the employment of the
Liverpool Cathedral Constables.
See also
*
Cathedral constable
*
Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
Law enforcement in the United Kingdom is organised separately in each of the legal systems of the United Kingdom: England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Most law enforcement duties are carried out by police, police constables of ...
*
List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom
There are a number of agencies that participate in law enforcement in the United Kingdom which can be grouped into three general types:
* Territorial police forces, who carry out the majority of policing. These are police forces that cover a p ...
References
External links
Police forces of England
Church law enforcement agencies
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