Welcome return of police Custodian helmets

TRADITIONAL police Custodian helmets have made a welcome return to the streets of Warrington town centre.

The traditional helmets provide high visibility and have been welcomed back by members of the public as well as by the officers wearing them.

Supt. Adam Ross, Force Commander at Warrington said:”As well as being practical and distinctive they also form part of Our rich history and what the public expects the Police to look like.
“Positive comments so far have been overwhelming in relation to how the public feel safe and how they can spot officers on foot beat a mile off.
“They are making a difference to high visibility policing in our town.”

Sgt. Graham Robinson from Warrington town centre’s local policing unit says the feedback from the public has been “overwhelmingly positive.”

History of police headgear in Cheshire
When the Cheshire Constabulary was established in 1857 the headgear of most police forces in Great Britain was the stovepipe hat which was a high reinforced top hat originally adopted by the Metropolitan Police when it was established in 1829.

About 1863 the Metropolitan Police replaced the stove pipe hat with a helmet and during the mid/late 1860s this was introduced into other forces. Cheshire continued with the cap for routine everyday use but also issued helmets to all ranks for wear on special occasions as directed in weekly orders, these included attendance at the Assizes, Race meetings, Royal visits and other important events. The helmets were fitted with a ball top which was screwed into the top of the helmet and this was interchangeable with a spike which was to be fitted when worn for important events as directed in force orders and also when officers attended Divine Service on a Sunday.

The cap as first issued was superseded around 1880 by another style of cap known as the Shako and this became the routine day to day headgear of the force until 1935 when it was abolished by Major Becke the incoming Chief Constable who replaced it with the peaked cap. Helmets however were still issued for wear on special occasions but by that time the more ornate pattern helmet had been replaced by the rose top style which are still worn by many forces for example Lancashire. Caps were the routine day to day head gear of the Cheshire Constabulary until 1964 when the current style of helmet more commonly known as the Cocks Comb was introduced for everyday wear by Constables and Sergeants, this style of helmet was more prevalent in forces in the North of England.