Metropolitan Police Service | |
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![]() Current badge (St. Edward's Crown) as of July 2024 | |
![]() Current flag (St. Edward's Crown) as of July 2024 | |
Common name | The Met[1] |
Abbreviation | MPS[2] |
Agency overview | |
Formed | 29 September 1829[3] |
Preceding agencies | |
Employees | 43,571 in total[6] 32,493 police officers[6] 9,816 police staff[6] 1,262 PCSOs[6] |
Volunteers | 1,858 special constables 1,500 police support volunteers 3,658 volunteer police cadets |
Annual budget | £4.43 billion[7] |
Legal personality | Police force |
Jurisdictional structure | |
Operations jurisdiction | Greater London, UK |
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Map of the Metropolitan Police District | |
Size | 1,578 km2 (609 sq mi) |
Population | 8.95 million (2019/20)[8] |
Legal jurisdiction | England and Wales (throughout the whole of the United Kingdom, including Scotland and Northern Ireland, under certain limited circumstances) |
Primary governing body | Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime |
Secondary governing body | Home Office |
Constituting instruments | |
General nature | |
Operational structure | |
Overseen by | |
Headquarters | New Scotland Yard, Westminster, London, England |
Police officers | 32,493 full time 1,858 special constables |
PCSOs | 1,262 |
Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime responsible | |
Agency executives | |
Website | |
www |
The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly known as the Metropolitan Police, which is still its common name, serves as the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and crime prevention within Greater London. In addition, it is responsible for specialised tasks throughout the United Kingdom, such as dealing with counter-terrorism throughout the UK, and the protection of certain individuals, including the monarch, royal family, governmental officials,[10] and other designated figures. Commonly referred to as the Met, it is also referred to as Scotland Yard or the Yard, after the location of its original headquarters in Great Scotland Yard, Whitehall in the 19th century.[11] The Met is presently headquartered at New Scotland Yard, on the Victoria Embankment.[12]
The main geographical area covered by the Met, the Metropolitan Police District, consists of the 32 London boroughs,[13] and excludes the square mile of the City of London — a largely non-residential and financial district, overseen by the City of London Police. As the force responsible for the majority of UK's capital, the Met has significant responsibilities and unique challenges, such as protecting 164 foreign embassies and High Commissions,[14] policing London City and Heathrow airports, protecting the Palace of Westminster, and managing a higher volume of protests and events than any other British police force, with 3,500 such events in 2016.[14]
The force, by officer numbers, ranks as the largest police force within the United Kingdom and among the largest globally.[15] Excluding its national roles, the Met oversees the eighth-smallest primary geographic area (police area) compared to other territorial police forces in the UK.
The force operates under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, directly accountable to the Mayor of London, through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime and the Home Office. The post of commissioner was first held jointly by Sir Charles Rowan and Sir Richard Mayne, with Sir Mark Rowley currently holding the position since July 2022.[16]