Policy background Special constables – Police Federation membership
The Police Federation represents the interests of police officers below the rank of superintendent (namely, constables, sergeants, inspectors and chief inspectors). It was created in 1919 to represent officers, reflecting the fact that police officers are members of a disciplined service with an obligation to protect the public and, as such, are prohibited from joining a trade union or taking industrial action.
	Membership of the Police Federation is confined to members of a police force (section 59 of the Police Act 1996), that is those who hold the office of constable and are remunerated by their police force. In England and Wales, special constables, that is volunteer police officers, are not "members" of their police force and are therefore ineligible for membership of the Police Federation. While special constables can access insurance, funded by the Home Office, to cover the cost of legal assistance for disciplinary and misconduct proceedings, this does not provide the end-to-end support, advice and pastoral care, for example in the immediate aftermath of an incident, that comes with membership of the Police Federation.
	In July 2019, the then Home Secretary announced the Government’s intention to support the Police Federation offering membership to special constables. Section 4 of the Act amends the Police Act 1996 to enable the Police Federation to represent special constables.
	Special constables are increasingly fulfilling a range of specialised and frontline roles within police forces and therefore often face the same risks as regular officers. These provisions will ensure special constables in England and Wales have access to the same level of support and representation as regular constables through access to membership of the Police Federation.