About us

We cover the largest geographical police area in England, extending 180 miles from the Dorset and Somerset borders in the east to the Isles of Scilly in the west.

Our policing area includes the cities of Exeter and Plymouth, popular seaside resorts such as Torquay and Newquay, and a large rural population, each of which present very different policing challenges.

The area’s population is around 1.5 million, rising to eight million with the influx of visitors in the summer months.

The Force is split into three geographical areas Cornwall & The Isles of Scilly, Plymouth and Devon, each with its own commander. These areas are further broken down into sectors and neighbourhood beats.

To find out more about your local police please visit our local policing team pages.

Our history dates back to 1836 when 24 borough police forces were formed across Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Parish constables were elected once a year by the vestry meeting in each parish, and the office was often unpopular, as they received no wages.

However, in the 1850s the Devon County Constabulary and Cornwall County Constabulary were formed, bringing a new professionalism to the policing of the peninsula. These constabularies, plus the Exeter City Police and the Plymouth Borough Police, finally came together in a series of mergers resulting in the formation of the Devon and Cornwall Constabulary in 1967.

If you would like to find out more about our history or contact our archives, the contact details are given below.

By telephone: 01837 658414

In writing to:

Devon & Cornwall Constabulary
Heritage & Learning Resource
Okehampton Police Station
Exeter Road
OKEHAMPTON, Devon EX20 1NN

Or use the email form by following this link.

For the Friends of the Heritage & Learning Resource site please visit here.