Epping Forest Keepers
Encyclopedia
The Epping Forest Keepers are an ancient and historical body of people who are employed by the City of London
, who in return are responsible, as the Conservators, for the management and care of Epping Forest
, which covers approximately ten square miles of forest, bridleway, woodland and recreational space stretching from Forest Gate
in east London
, north to North Weald in Essex
. The horse mounted section was disbanded in 2009. The forest is managed by the City of London Corporation and is one of many open spaces that comes under their control, even though Epping Forest
and the others are a considerable distance from the Square Mile
.
s, assistant reeves, bailiffs or other officers appointed by them for 'securing the better execution' of the Act and their bylaws. Epping Forest keepers are sworn as constable
s under section 43 of the Act, giving them all the powers and privileges of a constable inside the forest. They are sworn in before a Justice of the Peace
for Essex
. Assaulting or resisting a constable is an offence.
If a constable sees or finds a person committing an offence against the bylaws, or if they have reasonable suspicion to believe that a person has committed an offence against the byelaws, they may stop and detain them, and if their name and address are unknown, they may 'stop and apprehend' them instead - presumably meaning arrest
. They also have the power to stop, detain and examine vehicles or things to which the offence, or suspected offence, relates.
Epping Forest is not a separate police area
, the statutory responsibility for policing the forest rests either with the Metropolitan Police
for parts of the forest within the Metropolitan Police District
or Essex Police
for the remainder of the forest located in the Essex police area.
s, Essex Police or Metropolitan Police Service
. However, there are times when the local police forces do not have geographical knowledge and that is where the forest keeper is most useful.
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
, who in return are responsible, as the Conservators, for the management and care of Epping Forest
Epping Forest
Epping Forest is an area of ancient woodland in south-east England, straddling the border between north-east Greater London and Essex. It is a former royal forest, and is managed by the City of London Corporation....
, which covers approximately ten square miles of forest, bridleway, woodland and recreational space stretching from Forest Gate
Forest Gate
Forest Gate is a residential area in the London Borough of Newham, 7 miles northeast of Charing Cross. It is bordered by Manor Park to the east and and to the west lies Stratford town centre. The northern half of the busy Green Street runs through it.-History:...
in east London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, north to North Weald in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. The horse mounted section was disbanded in 2009. The forest is managed by the City of London Corporation and is one of many open spaces that comes under their control, even though Epping Forest
Epping Forest
Epping Forest is an area of ancient woodland in south-east England, straddling the border between north-east Greater London and Essex. It is a former royal forest, and is managed by the City of London Corporation....
and the others are a considerable distance from the Square Mile
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
Powers
The powers to swear in constables come from the Epping Forest Act 1878. This gives the Conservators of the forest the power to swear in reeveReeve (England)
Originally in Anglo-Saxon England the reeve was a senior official with local responsibilities under the Crown e.g. as the chief magistrate of a town or district...
s, assistant reeves, bailiffs or other officers appointed by them for 'securing the better execution' of the Act and their bylaws. Epping Forest keepers are sworn as constable
Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
s under section 43 of the Act, giving them all the powers and privileges of a constable inside the forest. They are sworn in before a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
for Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. Assaulting or resisting a constable is an offence.
If a constable sees or finds a person committing an offence against the bylaws, or if they have reasonable suspicion to believe that a person has committed an offence against the byelaws, they may stop and detain them, and if their name and address are unknown, they may 'stop and apprehend' them instead - presumably meaning arrest
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
. They also have the power to stop, detain and examine vehicles or things to which the offence, or suspected offence, relates.
Epping Forest is not a separate police area
Police area
A police area is the area for which a territorial police force in the United Kingdom is responsible for policing.Every location in the United Kingdom has a designated territorial police force with statutory responsibility for providing policing services and enforcing criminal law, which is set out...
, the statutory responsibility for policing the forest rests either with the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
for parts of the forest within the Metropolitan Police District
Metropolitan Police District
The Metropolitan Police District is the police area which is policed by London's Metropolitan Police Service. It currently consists of Greater London, excluding the City of London.-History:...
or Essex Police
Essex Police
Essex Police is a territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Essex in the east of England.It is one of the largest non-metropolitan police forces in the United Kingdom, employing approximately 3,600 police officers and operating across an area of over and with a population of...
for the remainder of the forest located in the Essex police area.
Role
There are currently twelve such constables - this is much lower than is historically listed as there have been as many as twenty one forest keepers in the past. However, the level of acquired knowledge within the Forest Keeper section means that they are acutely atuned to everyday activities on the forest. Generally the forest keepers act as forest rangers and very rarely use their powers as a constable. Policing issues are mainly left to the local territorial police forceTerritorial police force
The phrase Territorial Police Force varies in precise meaning according to the country to which it is related, generally distinguishing a force whose area of responsibility is defined by sub-national boundaries from others which deal with the entire country or a restricted range of...
s, Essex Police or Metropolitan Police Service
Metropolitan Police Service
The Metropolitan Police Service is the territorial police force responsible for Greater London, excluding the "square mile" of the City of London which is the responsibility of the City of London Police...
. However, there are times when the local police forces do not have geographical knowledge and that is where the forest keeper is most useful.
See also
- List of law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom
- Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
External links
- City of London: Open Spaces
- Map of Epping Forest
- A Keeper's Tale by Fred J SpeakmanFred J SpeakmanFred J Speakman was an English naturalist and author. He was one of Britain's best known naturalist-authors in the 1960s.- Life :...
describes the life of forest keeper Sidney Butt ISBN 0851152244 (1962)George Bell & SonsGeorge Bell & SonsGeorge Bell & Sons was a book publishing house located in London, United Kingdom, from 1839 to 1986. It was founded by George Bell as an educational bookseller, with the intention of selling the output of London university presses; but became best known as an independent publisher of classics and...