Metropolitan Police District

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The Metropolitan Police District (MPD) is the area policed by London's Metropolitan Police Service. It currently consists of Greater London, excluding the City of London.

History

The Metropolitan Police District was defined in the schedule of the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 as an approximately circular area within a seven-mile (11-km) radius of Charing Cross, which was divided into four districts and 17 police divisions.

It consisted of parts of:

Middlesex: The Liberty of Westminster, The Holborn division, the inner parishes of the Finsbury division, the Tower division, the Kensington division, the township of New Brentford, the Inns of Court and the liberty of Ely Place.
Kent: The parishes of St Paul and St Nicholas, Deptford, and the parish of Greenwich.
Surrey: The parishes of Bermondsey, Camberwell, Clapham, Lambeth, Newington, Putney, Rotherhithe, Streatham, Tooting, Wandsworth, and Christchurch, Southwark, The Liberty of the Clink, The hamlet of Hatcham, and the Borough of Southwark.

There have been numerous changes to the boundaries of the MPD, and of the divisions therein. The Metropolitan Police Act 1839 recognised that the "boundary is... very irregular" and made it lawful to add any place in the Central Criminal Court District and also "any part of any parish, township, precinct or place" not more than 15 miles (24 km) from Charing Cross. The enlarged district encompassed the metropolitan area and some parts of Essex, Kent, Hertfordshire and Surrey. The 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica notes that it included "those civil parishes [...] of which any part is within twelve miles of, or of which no part is more than fifteen miles from, Charing Cross".

Metropolitan Police District 1840 - 1946
	The map shows the MPD boundary in red. At the centre is the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works 1855 - 1889, which became the County of London in 1889. The other dashed lines show the boundaries of Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey.

The enlargement under the 1839 Act was carried out by order in council issued on January 3, 1840, which listed the following "parishes, townships, precincts, and places" ... "should be added to, and form part of, the metropolitan police district":

In the County of Middlesex, Ashford, Bedfont (East), Cowley, Cranford, Drayton (West), Edgeware (sic) including Whitchurch, Edmonton, Enfield, Feltham, Finchley, Fryern Barnet, Greenford, Hadley (Monken), Hampton (Town and Court), Hamptonwick liberty (sic), Hanwell, Hanworth, Harefield, Harlington, Harmondsworth, Harrow, Hayes, Hendon, Heston, Hillingdon, Hornsey, Ickenham, Isleworth, Kingsbury, Laleham, Littleton, Northolt, Norwood precinct, Perivale, Pinner, Ruislip, Shepperton, South Mimms, Staines, Stanmore (Great and Little), Stanwell, Sunbury, Teddington, Tottenham, Twickenham, Twyford Abbey, Uxbridge township and chapelry, Wilsden (sic)
In the County of Surrey: Addington, Banstead, Beddington and Wallington hamlet, Carshalton, Cheam, Chessington, Croydon, Cuddington, Epsom, Ewell exclusive of part near Walton, Farley, Kew, Kingston-on-Thames, Ham-with-Hatch hamlet, Hook hamlet, Long Ditton, Maldon (sic), Merton, Mitcham, Morden, Mortlake, Moulsey (East), Moulsey (West), Petersham, Richmond, Roehampton, Sanderstead, Sutton, Thames Ditton including hamlet of Ember, hamlet of Weston, and hamlet of Claygate, Warlingham, Wimbledon, Woodmansterne, Worcester Park (extra-parochial)
In the County of Kent Beckenham, Bexley, Bromley, Charlton, Chislehurst, Crayford, Down (sic), Eltham including Mottingham, Erith, Farnborough, Foots Cray, Hayes, Keston, Kidbrooke, Lee, Lewisham, North Cray, Orpington, Plumstead, St Mary's Cray, Wickham (East), Wickham (West), Woolwich
In County of Essex Barking (Town Ward, Chadwell Ward, Great Ilford Ward, Ripple Ward), Chigwell, Chingford, Dagenham, East Ham, Little Ilford, Loughton, Low Leyton, Waltham Abbey (Holyfield hamlet, Sewardstone hamlet, Upshire hamlet, Waltham Town hamlet), Walthamstow, Wanstead, West Ham (Church-street Ward, Plaistow Ward, Stratford Ward), Woodford
In the County of Hertford: Aldenham, Bushey, Cheshunt, Chipping Barnet, East Barnet, Elstree, Northaw, Ridge, Shenley, Theobald-street, TotteridgeOrder in Council enlarging the Metropolitan Police District (SI 1840 5001)

In 1946 the Metropolitan Police District was somewhat redrawn by the Police Act 1946, to match the then local government boundaries. The boroughs of Dartford and Watford, the urban district of Caterham and Warlingham and the parish of St. Peter Rural were wholly excluded from the District; whilst the borough of Epsom and Ewell, the urban districts of Banstead, Cheshunt, Coulsdon and Purley, Crayford, Esher and Orpington were brought wholly within the district. [Home Office Circular 100/1946]

In 1965 the boundaries of London were redrawn to broadly, but not exactly, match the MPD, and the MPD defined again by section 76 of the London Government Act 1963. In 1974 it was again restated, by S.I. 1974/482, [Hansard 4 May 1999 : Column 782] [National Archives: Explanatory note describing Metropolitan Police District in 1991]. Retrieved January 30, 2006.:

Greater London, excluding the City of London and the Temples
Essex: Epping Forest : former Chigwell Urban District and parish of Waltham Abbey
Hertfordshire: Broxbourne : former Cheshunt urban district
Hertfordshire: Hertsmere
Hertfordshire: Welwyn Hatfield: parish of Northaw (Northaw and Cuffley)
Surrey: Elmbridge: former Esher urban district
Surrey: Epsom and Ewell
Surrey: Spelthorne
Surrey: Reigate and Banstead: former Banstead urban district

The anomaly of having the Metropolitan Police responsible for areas outside the Greater London boundary continued until the Greater London Authority Act 1999 set up a Police Authority for Greater London (it previously having been under central government control), and consequently redefined the outer boundaries of the MPD to match Greater London. The excised county areas were reassigned to Essex Police, Hertfordshire Constabulary and Surrey Police. HMSO, Greater London Authority Act 1999. 1999 c. 29

Exceptions

Not all parts of London, although within the boundaries of the MPD, are policed by the Metropolitan Police. The Greater London Authority Act 1999 defines the Metropolitan Police District as consisting of "Greater London, excluding the City of London, the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple." The City of London has its own police force, the City of London Police, which also covers the Inner and Middle Temples.

The London Underground and main line railway stations are policed by the British Transport Police, although they form part of the Metropolitan Police District. The Royal Parks of London used to be policed by a separate force called the Royal Parks Constabulary (RPC). The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 abolished the RPC and placed the parks under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police.

References

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