National Police Library

Location| College of Policing,
Leamington Road,
Ryton-on-Dunsmore,
CV8 3EN, United Kingdom
Type| Library
Established| 1948
Collection
Items collected| books, journals, magazines, archives, theses, grey literature and pamphlets
Size|

* 60,000 books and pamphlets
* 3,500 periodical titles

Access and use
Access requirements| Free access to UK police and police staff
Other information
Website| National Police Library

The National Police Library, in the United Kingdom, is a special and research library. It is part of the College of Policing, funded by the Home Office, and is Europe's largest policing library. It is only accessible to current serving police and police staff in the United Kingdom.[1][2][3][4]

Services include access to online resources, electronic books and periodicals; postal book loans; reference enquiries and document delivery service;[5] and advanced search skills training.[6][7]

The printed collections at the library contain over 60,000 books, journals (printed and online), theses, pamphlets, reports collected from government and police forces, and unpublished grey literature. The collection also holds every issue of the Police Review since 1893,[8] and the Police Gazette since the late 18th century.

Subject coverage includes police and policing, crime and crime prevention, criminology, criminal justice, forensic science, leadership,[9] general management, training, educational theory, social science and psychology.

## History

[edit]

The library was established as part of the National Police College in Ryton-on-Dunsmore in June 1948,[10] originally created to serve senior ranks.[11][12] This followed the recommendation in the Dixon Report (1930): "the object of which should be to develop so far as possible each officer’s capacity for individual application to the problems of his profession and his fitness for higher responsibility." In 1945, The Police Journal: A Review for the Police Forces of the Empire also suggested the need for a National Police Library.[13]

The library was renamed Police Staff College Library and relocated to the Police Staff College, Bramshill[14] in 1960. The library was situated in the Long Gallery on the first floor of Bramshill House. In 1998, the library was renamed National Police Library to reflect the change in outlook; widening access to services to police officers and police staff across all forces across the UK.

The library later become part of the National Policing Improvement Agency and in 2013, it transferred to the newly established College of Policing.[15] Following the sale of the Bramshill House in 2014,[16] the National Police Library temporarily relocated to the College's Sunningdale Park site in March 2015.[17][18] The library moved permanently to the College of Policing's headquarters in Ryton-On-Dunsmore in February 2017.[19]

## References

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1. ^ "Bramshill police training centre to be sold". BBC. BBC. 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
2. ^ "Bramshill police training site on the market for £20m". Get Hampshire. Get Hampshire. 2013. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
3. ^ Dilip K. Das, Peter C. Kratcoski (2007). Police Education and Training in a Global Society. ISBN 9780739158999. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
4. ^ David Hirschel; William O. Wakefield; Scott Sasse (2008). Criminal Justice in England and the United States. ISBN 9780763741129. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
5. ^ Dilip K. Das, Peter C. Kratcoski (2007). Police Education and Training in a Global Society. ISBN 9780739158999. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
6. ^ Richard Malthouse, Jodi Roffey-Barentsen (2010). Study Skills for Policing Students. ISBN 9781844456604. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
7. ^ "National Police Library". College of Policing. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
8. ^ Marlies Janson, Helmut Opitz, ed. (2007). World Guide to Special Libraries, Volume 1. ISBN 9783110917857. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
9. ^ Robert Adlam, Peter Villiers (2003). Police Leadership in the 21st Century: Philosophy, Doctrine and Developments. ISBN 9781906534370. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
10. ^ Harris, R. E. (1949). "New Police College Opened in Britain". Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology. 40 (2). Retrieved 2 February 2018.
11. ^ Marlies Janson, Helmut Opitz, ed. (2007). World Guide to Special Libraries, Volume 1. ISBN 9783110917857. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
12. ^ "National Police Library moves after 50 years". College of Policing. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
13. ^ The Police Journal: A Review for the Police Forces of the Empire Volumes 18-19. P. Allen & Company Limited. 1945. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
14. ^ Thomas P. Winsor (2012). Independent Review of Police Officer and Staff Remuneration and Conditions, Part 2. ISBN 9780101832526. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
15. ^ "Home Affairs Committee. Written evidence submitted by the National Policing Improvement Agency". UK Parliament. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
16. ^ "Home Office puts mansion with 329 bedrooms up for sale". The Telegraph. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
17. ^ "Historic Knowledge Resource on the Move". Police Oracle. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
18. ^ "College of Policing move to Sunningdale Park". College of Policing. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
19. ^ "The National Police Library is moving and improving". College of Policing. Retrieved 27 September 2016.

## External links

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* National Police Library
* National Police Library - Twitter account

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