Glossary
ACR - Area Control Room (another name for DCR - despatchers who send us to jobs)
ARV - Armed Response Vehicle (now also generically meaning officers who staff such vehicles… i.e. “Are you an ARV?”)
ASBO - Anti-Social Behaviour Order - issued by the courts imposing conditions on people (such as curfews, restrictions on movements etc) in an effort to curb Anti-Social Behaviour
CDtP - Complainant declined to prosecute. This is where an offence has occured, and we know it has, but someone doesn’t want anything done about it. It is a statement taken from the complainant to absolve the police of any investigation.
CID - Criminal Investigation Department - In other words “detectives”. These usually wear plain clothes rather than uniform and perform investigations into the more serious crimes.
DCR - District Control Room (see ACR)
Fixed Penalty - An on the spot fine. This does not mean it is payable immediately but that it can be issued “on the spot” by the police officer, i.e. without having to go through a criminal court for a conviction. They can be parking tickets, minor motoring offences (e.g. not wearing a seatbelt, using a mobile phone whilst driving), minor disorder, and other minor offences.
Hi-Viz - Anything bright and visible. Short for “high visibility”. Can be big yellow police vans, bright reflective yellow coats etc
Hi-Viz Patrol - performing normal operational duties but in high visibility mode to ensure that you are seen, either to promote police activity or to deter crime.
HVP - (see Hi-Viz Patrol)
KPI’s - Key performance indicators (see below). These are PI’s that are role specific, or “key” to that individual scenario
Performance Indicators - anything that can be totalled up to evidence how you have performed in a certain area of core police tasks (e.g. the amount of arrests, the amount of summons files)
Plain Clothes - Normal everyday attire, i.e. not a uniform. Mostly suits with shirt and tie for a smart appearance, but can be scruffy clothes in order to blend into situations.
PI’s - See performance indicators above
PND - Penalty Notice For Disorder
Summons - A court order for someone to attend court. Usually an offender but can also be a witness. Failure to comply with a summons will result in a warrant being issued.
Summons file - a prosecution file that does not involve an arrest. Usually for minor motoring offences where arresting would be inappropriate. The file is essentially the same but is laid before a magistrate in order that a “summons” (see above) be issued by the court to the offender.
Warrant - A warrant is an instruction issued by the court to someone (usually a police officer). Warrants can be for various things, but usually they are either an instruction to arrest someone to be brought before a court (e.g. for ignoring a summons) or for gaining entry to a property in order to search for something (e.g. evidence of a crime).
Whizzer - local slang for a fixed penalty (see above)
