Policing: Peelian Principles

The Peelian principles, policing by consent

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• ESL (English as a Second Language)

  • ESP (English for Specific Purposes)

    • English for Police and Military

Today, we explore the fundamental principles that underpin ethical policing – “the Peelian principles”. These principles, crafted by Sir Robert Peel (Wikipedia), a British statesman and reformer, have served as a beacon for law enforcement agencies worldwide, guiding them towards a path of integrity, respect, and community engagement.

Sir Robert Peel “is regarded as the father of modern British policing, owing to his founding of the Metropolitan Police Service.”

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Opening Discussion Questions

We invite you to engage with the open discussion questions as a warm-up activity and to stimulate your vocabulary development. These questions are not mandatory but serve as a springboard for personal reflection and exploration.

Remember, the essence of learning lies in active engagement and critical thinking.

Feel free to respond to these questions directly to this email (as text or voice notes), or share your insights in the comments section below. We are here to support your learning journey and provide feedback on your responses.

1. What do you understand by the term "ethical policing"?

How should police officers conduct themselves to maintain public trust and uphold the law Encourage participants to share their thoughts on what they consider to be ethical policing behavior.

2. What are the five core Peelian principles of policing?

Introduce the five key principles that Sir Robert Peel laid out as the foundation for ethical policing:

1. To prevent crime and disorder, rather than simply reacting to them.

2. To protect the public from violence and protect property.

3. To gain the willing cooperation of the public in preventing crime and disorder.

4. To use minimum force, and only when necessary.

5. To always act with due regard for the rights of the individual.

3. How are the Peelian principles relevant to today's policing?

Discuss how these principles, though formulated in the early 19th century, remain relevant and applicable in modern policing. How can these principles guide police officers in maintaining public trust and effectively serving their communities?

4. What are some examples of how police officers uphold the Peelian principles in their daily work?

Provide examples of how police officers can apply these principles in various situations, such as interacting with the public, investigating crimes, and maintaining public order.

5. Does your country, national or local police force(s) have its own version of ethical policing principles?

Homework idea: Explore whether your participants' country has established its own set of principles or guidelines for ethical policing. How do these principles compare to the Peelian principles?

6. What challenges do police officers face in upholding ethical policing practices?

Discuss the challenges that police officers may encounter in maintaining ethical behavior, such as the pressures of maintaining order, dealing with difficult situations, and navigating complex social dynamics.

7. How can police agencies and training institutions ensure that police officers are equipped with the skills and knowledge to uphold ethical policing principles?

Explore how police academies and training programs can incorporate the Peelian principles and other ethical guidelines into their curriculum. How can they foster a culture of ethical policing within their organizations?

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The Nine Principles of (ethical) Policing

These general principles were distilled into nine points by Charles Reith in his 1948 book A Short History of the British Police and it is in this form they are usually cited

Sir Robert Peel, the founder of the Metropolitan Police Service in London, established the nine Peelian principles as a framework for ethical and effective policing. These principles continue to be relevant and influential in modern law enforcement worldwide.

Instructions

- Read the Peelian principles one by one.
- Focus on the highlighted words.
- Use the links below each principle to learn more about the highlighted words.

1. “To prevent crime and disorder, as an alternative to their repression by military force and severity of legal punishment.”

   Vocabulary crime, disorder, repression, force, severity, punishment

2. “To recognise always that the power of the police to fulfil their functions and duties is dependent on public approval of their existence, actions and behaviour, and on their ability to secure and maintain public respect.”

   Vocabulary recognise , power, fulfil, duty, approval, existence, action, behaviour, ability, secure, maintain, respect

3. “To recognise always that to secure and maintain the respect and approval of the public means also the securing of the willing co-operation of the public in the task of securing observance of laws.”

   Vocabulary willing, co-operation, task, secure, observance, law

4. “To recognise always that the extent to which the co-operation of the public can be secured diminishes proportionately the necessity of the use of physical force and compulsion for achieving police objectives.”

   Vocabulary extent, diminish, proportion, proportionate, proportionately

5. “To seek and preserve public favour, not by pandering to public opinion, but by constantly demonstrating absolutely impartial service to law, in complete independence of policy, and without regard to the justice or injustice of the substance of individual laws, by ready offering of individual service and friendship to all members of the public without regard to their wealth or social standing, by ready exercise of courtesy and friendly good humour, and by ready offering of individual sacrifice in protecting and preserving life.”

   Vocabulary seek, preserve, favour, pander, demonstrate, impartial, independence, policy, regard, justice, injustice, substance, frienship, standing, courtesy, humour, sacrifice, protect, preserve

6. “To use physical force only when the exercise of persuasion, advice and warning is found to be insufficient to obtain public co-operation to an extent necessary to secure observance of law or to restore order, and to use only the minimum degree of physical force which is necessary on any particular occasion for achieving a police objective.”

   Vocabulary exercise, persuade, persuasion, advise, advice, warning, sufficient, insufficient, obtain, restore, degree, occasion, achieving, objective

7. “To maintain at all times a relationship with the public that gives reality to the historic tradition that the police are the public and that the public are the police, the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full-time attention to duties which are incumbent on every citizen in the interests of community welfare and existence.”

   Vocabulary maintain, relation, relationship, reality, historic, incumbent, welfare, existence

8. “To recognise always the need for strict adherence to police-executive functions, and to refrain from even seeming to usurp the powers of the judiciary of avenging individuals or the State, and of authoritatively judging guilt and punishing the guilty.”

   Vocabulary strict, adherence, executive, refrain, seem, usurp, judiciary, avenging, authority, authorative, authoratively, judge, guilt, guilty, punish

9. “To recognise always that the test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, and not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with them.”

   Vocabulary test, efficient, efficiency, absent, absence, disorder, evident, evidence, deal

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Further Reading

• UK Government - Definition of policing by consent

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