An Introduction to British Police Helmets

Greater Manchester, Humberside and Bedfordshire Police helmets

The standard issue police helmet used by Avon & Somerset Constabulary is the Custodian rose top helmet. The British Police use three different designs of helmet which are known as Coxcomb, Ball top and Rose top (see photos above). The type of helmet adopted varies regionally and is often influenced by the history of that Police force.

Helmets were traditionally made from cork or stiffened felt until being superseded by the ABS plastic shell still used today. Increasing public disorder during the 1970's identified the need for a helmet which could offer more protection. In 1979 the first helmets with a plastic ABS construction were being issued. Externally they looked the same. The interiors were made to resemble the appearance of the cork helmets using a mixture of materials.

Over the years, some Police Forces have adopted different styles of helmet. For example, Kent Police have previously used the standard Custodian style helmet with rose top. In 1968 they changed to the Coxcomb design of helmet, as seen below.

New style Police helmet for Kent 1968

See also my other separate posts for more information about helmets including their design. These can be found in the right margin under Blog Archive.

On the outside helmets feature a band which can be made of black/chrome metal, leather, plastic or wool. Avon & Somerset have always used a black metal band held in place by four pins, plain on the front/back and a small rose motif on the sides. Since about 2017 they have issued helmets with a chrome band. I have separate posts in my blog with more information on the changes made to helmets used by Avon & Somerset Constabulary since 1974.

The topic of whether to retain Police helmets is nothing new and has been the subject of discussions by many Police Forces ever since they were first introduced in the 1870's. 

Birmingham Daily Post - Wednesday 23 March 1966 - Home Office uniform review

 

Times are changing and Thames Valley Police were the first to stop issuing helmets around 2009. West Yorkshire Police followed in 2015 as reported here Daily Telegraph: Police force scraps traditional bobbies' helmet:

However, there's still support from some to retain or even re-introduce Police helmets as reported in the two articles below:

BBC news 2012: Plea for old-style police helmets for Gwent Force:

Manchester Evening News 2005: Hats off to old favourite