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Coming Clean...............

 



The provision of housing has never been much of an issue for railway and dock officers. Although there are examples of accommodation being provided it was never on the scale common in county and borough forces.  All gone of course. One year’s balance sheet boosted by sales of assets that are now worth millions.  The problems of police officers affording a place live dogs many forces and BTP continues to suffers from a lack of parity over allowances.  In this context I was interested to see the approach to this subject by the authorities at the end of the Victorian period.  Whilst the great and good of Warwickshire acknowledged the need for police housing in Birmingham they were rather insistent that it should not be too luxurious, lest it rendered constables ‘unfit’ for work.  I particularly like the comment about sending officers to Madeira.  Having recently returned from that island I can testify to its health giving atmosphere.  The report inspired a number of follow up letters from junior officers pointing out that their need for a bath was a least as great as that of a Superintendent, citing the hygiene consequences of standing out in the hot sun in heavy tunics and dealing with noisome individuals.  Even the best research does not enable us to smell the past and this is both a shame and a relief.  Luckily the readership of this blog is rather limited.  I would hate Police and Crime Commissioners or the BTPA to be inspired by the attitude of their predecessors!

(Note that this blog has previously appeared as a post on Linkedin)

Source PRPG 05/05/1891p12

Jan 2022

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