Leading to HMS Excellent
The role of the Leading Patrolman was to augment patrols onshore and assist in regulating duties.
In 1968 Leading Patrolmen were renamed Leading Regulators. The use of the word Police in connection with the Regulating Branch apparently continued to find little appeal or favour amongst senior officers, who it appeared were reluctant to admit there was a need for a policing function in the Royal Navy.
The rank of Leading Regulator was chosen to reflect their role of being the junior members of the Regulating Branch and their increasing employment in wider regulating type duties, ashore and afloat.
However the wind of change never ceases and during the 1980’s it was considered that the School that was located on the foreshore on the north end of Whale Island had served its purpose and the management of HMS Excellent considered that it would be timely for the Regulating Branch to have a new home.
On the Island..
Whale Island
Captain Mansergh, the then Captain, authorised that De Jersey building on the southern end of the Island should be the new home of the School, the building having been vacated by the Armourers School.
So with tape measures and graph paper a young SD candidate called Jim Cunningham set about designing the internal spaces of the building to provide a teaching and meeting area for the students and staff, resulting in an excellent environment for learning and management.
At the official opening, Captain Mansergh commented that he considered that the branch would be well served by the move from the old foreshore war time buildings, in which many of us started our career in the Branch, and that we should consider Whale Island to be the official home of the Branch.
The Defence School
Another re-organisation occurred in 2005 when the MOD decided that there should be a tri-service Police Training Establishment, and this was to be housed at Southwick Park north of Portsmouth and named the Defence School of Guarding and Policing.
The location had been sequestered during the Second World War for MOD use and subsequently became known as HMS Dryad, which had responsibilities for training all things to do with Radar and Operations Room workings.
The training of the Warfare specialisation was subsequently moved to HMS Collingwood in Fareham, which previously was the training base for Weapons and Electrical training, so it would seem the MOD(N) had centred much of its training facilities within one large establishment.
Southwick Park
Thus emptied of Warfare personnel, Southwick Park became the home of training for all three service police forces, the Royal Military Police moving from their well-established home in Chichester, the RAF Police moved from RAF Newton in Nottinghamshire and RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire and as stated the Regulating School moved from Whale Island. The College is under the rotating Command of a Royal Military Police Lt. Colonel and a Royal Airforce Police Commander. Hampshire Constabulary have also established a training facility within the College grounds.
Interestingly, within the grounds each of the Service police have a museum. The Royal Military Police have a self-contained new building having had an established museum at their old Barracks, and the Royal Navy Police and Regulating Branch, and RAF Police Museums can be found on the ground floor of Dryad Building. The Museum is well worth a visit.
Extending our reach
Notwithstanding the transient nature of our training facilities over the years, it is interesting to see how the structure and context of the Branch has also evolved in recent years.
Pre-1968 Regulating Branch ratings were employed on cruisers and above only. However, the abolition of the Coxswains Branch meant that Regulators would be drafted to Destroyers, Frigates and below which was a major change in the employment of members of the Regulating Branch.
There were many Coxswains who attended training at the Regulating School and made a home within the branch and became fully integrated in all aspects of their new branch.
RPO and MAA at sea
This change found the Regulator at sea performing many tasks that were alien to them. For example, ensuring a Minor War Vessel (Minesweepers) were fully victualled, especially those vessels on Fishery Protection Duties, which in the main were manned by a Regulating Petty Officer.
In Destroyers and Frigates the Master at Arms found that life in these ships was to their liking. Being an integral part of a ships company and underpinning the running of the ship as the Whole Ship Coordinator was both challenging and stimulating.
HMS Bronington M1115 – Ton Class Coastal Minesweeper.
Regulator to Service Police
Many also found themselves acting as flight deck officers, and as helmsman for special sea duties of entering and leaving harbour, and when replenishing at sea from a stores ship.
All of which gave those who served tremendous job satisfaction.
1984 saw the introduction of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act requiring some significant updates to the training curriculum, and finally in 1990 all Regulators were classed as Service Police.
However the term Regulator remained in common use.
Security
Security reviews after the Provisional IRA’s bombing of the Royal Marines School of Music in Deal resulted in Regulators embracing security responsibilities for establishments.
Between 1996 and 2000, the Regulating Branch curtailed recruiting. The L. Reg was removed from ships to be replaced by a Writer. For a short time the MAA at sea operated as a singleton. We, as a Branch, were back in the exact same position that we had found ourselves in 1918, a dire situation.
However…..
Say hello to the EWO
A miracle took place and in early 1999, the report of the long awaited “Way Ahead Study” rejected the idea of recruiting to the Branch directly at Petty Officer level and recommended retaining the L. Regs. It also rejected some sideways recruiting into the rate of MAA in an attempt to alleviate the problem of insufficient Senior Regulators.
However, in the 2003 Naval Strategic Plan the TOPMAST Squad System was introduced into the Fleet. Those who were responsible for the way ahead for personnel of the engineering and subsurface sides of the navy prompted the creation of the Executive Warrant Officer, a position in submarines known as Chief of the Boat.
Armed Forces Act 2006
The most visible change for the Branch has been a change of emphasis.
Following the November 2005 move of the Regulating School to Southwick Park, the new Armed Forces Act declared that the term Regulating Branch would be known as Service Police, a title last held in 1860!
Following the implementation of the Armed Forces Act 2006,
A single, harmonised system of Service law was introduced in October 2009, following the formal implementation of the Armed Forces Act 2006.
The harmonised system would ensure that all three services were subject to a single Discipline Act and thus streamlining much of the training given to any Service Policeman or Policewoman.
Evolutionary change
The Branch Title changed to Royal Naval Police and would have a command structure headed by a Commander with a title of Provost Marshal (Navy), responsible to the First Sea Lord.
A functioning police force in our own right remained at the very heart of what we do going forward.
In a relatively recent clear change of strategy, the Provost Marshal (Navy) in post, Commander Jack Hawkins attended the Passing Out Parade at HMS Raleigh on 3rd March 2017 that included the FIRST RN Police Able Rate candidates.
Ranks and titles
A big change for the specialisation came in 2019 with the decision to change the name of the rank and some positions within the branch.
-Leading Regulator became Leading Hand (Police)
-Regulating Petty Officer became Petty Officer (Police)
-Master at Arms became Chief Petty Officer (Master at Arms)
-Warrant Officer (Master at Arms) became Warrant Officer 1 (Police)
Job specific title changes confirmed as follows:
Naval Provost Marshal became Regional Policing Commander
ANPM became Warrant Officer (Investigations and Policing) or WOIP
Provost Marshal (Navy) maintained the title in line with our sister services.
Warrant cards
Not everyone is a fan of change but as a part of a rapidly evolving Navy, our specialisation, and the roles they play, must adapt to suit.
Whilst history repeated itself resulting in the demise of the MAA at sea, withdrawn from Destroyers and Frigates and replaced by an RPO, It is pleasing to see that we have retained the Master at Arms title.
On passing out from the Royal Navy Police Initial Course, newly qualified ratings are issued with a warrant card, which is a change from passing out from the LPM(Q) or LREG(Q) course of the past when the Crown and the NP Armlet worn on the wrist was considered your authority.
Naval meets civilian
Training is more in line with civilian counterparts with a 14 week initial course covering everything from statement writing to Personal Safety Training with handcuffs and batons and everything in between. Subsequent courses such as Serious Crime Investigation Course are very much equated to civilian police courses.
Administration and the executive functions historically associated with the Regulating Branch are being conducted less by the RNP, we still have a huge part to play in the upkeep of morale and discipline of the RN and that will never change.
Image credit: LH (Police) Faye Mason.
The modern branch
Since promotion to Cdr and taking over as PM(N) in Nov 19, Cdr Oakey has driven some recent changes to the RNP, made with a view to remain relevant and to ensure that the specialisation is in the best place to support the RN Transformation, now in full swing.
RNP will provide enhanced support to the Carrier Strike Group and reorganisation of manpower to better achieve our aim. How this will transpire, as to how the RNP continue to support Front Line Commands in a faster, more fluid maritime environment, is still in discussion.
This year will also see the Warrant Officer 2 rank being introduced to the RNP as the streamlining of the WO1 cadre continues, with the first CPO(MAA) potentially being promoted to WO2 RNP early in 2021.
Image credit: Petty Officer(Police) King-John.
Strategic outlook
Moving forward, It is the intention of PM(N) to ensure that the RNP will have been reconfigured to deliver effective and efficient policing and investigative support to the RN.
The organisation will have minimised the disruption of churn within the key working areas of investigations and intelligence by utilising a more comprehensive employment model.
PM(N) will have OPCOM of all RNP for policing and investigations and be an active member of ACPO. RNP will have established collaborative working partnerships with Service, HOPF and other agencies in support of their outputs. It will be recognised as a contributor to intelligence within the wider national and international intelligence framework.
The RNP corporate image will have been elevated and RNP will be achieving greater recognition for being a professionally trained and adequately equipped service law enforcement agency.
Image credit: Cdr Oakey and newly appointed Officers.
