How three generations of the same family served Coventry
An officer is following a long-standing tradition after becoming the third consecutive generation of her family to join the police force in the West Midlands. The Finney name has been synonymous with Coventry police for more than 40 years. Dennis Finney joined in 1980 and was stationed at Stoney Stanton Road, then 14-years later his …
Fashion Police – a look back in time
On Tuesday (12 Nov), we welcomed guests from the force, Birmingham City University (BCU), and youth organisations, to a heritage-themed fashion show displaying 11 different police uniforms from across the years. The fashion show was a collaboration between the Museum and BCU students in the gaming, digital, and fashion schools, funded by Heritage Fund UK. …
The memories of fallen officers live on
The years may pass but the memories of our fallen heroes are never forgotten. Former police staff who made the ultimate sacrifice are immortalised within an area of remembrance at our Lloyd House headquarters, and within a tribute at the West Midlands Police Museum. It enables loved ones, the policing family and wider public to …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – Memorials
The Roll of Honour is very special to us at the museum. I first got involved with the Roll of Honour in 2015, when I was working in Estates and volunteering with the museum. In the museum in Sparkhill, there were 15 filing cabinets full of Birmingham City Police and West Midlands Constabulary files. I …
New Coventry Police Museum opens
We’re delighted to have opened our new Coventry Police Museum within the heart of the city centre. It has been opened today (4 September) within Coventry City Council House and contains a range of information, images and historical items. A number of guests including our Chief Constable Craig Guildford, the Police and Crime Commissioner Simon …
International Dog Day | No hiding place from our super sniffers
They’re our four-legged friends who play an important role in catching criminals across the West Midlands. Our cute but clever police dogs have been a much-valued part of our policing response for many decades now. While the breeds involved have evolved, so have the skills of our canine crimefighters due to our puppy development programme …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – The evolution of Operations
From Cappers Commandos to specialist, highly trained units This year I’ve been fascinated to learn about the history of the various different teams that make up the West Midlands Police Operations Department. This department is currently headed by Chief Superintendent Sarah Burton and includes teams such as Firearms, Operational Support Unit (OSU), Drones, Planning, Roads …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – From Tally Ho to Steelhouse Lane
For this blog, I thought I’d take a look back at how the museum itself has evolved over the past 50 years and how we are continuing to mark our special anniversary. The West Midlands Police Museum originated in 1964 as the Birmingham City Police Museum at our Tally Ho! training facility, so is actually …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – Happy Birthday West Midlands Police!
This month marked the exact anniversary of West Midlands Police turning 50. So rather than choose a specific theme to highlight, we’ve taken a look back at the early days of the force and some of the key events that marked its development. As the clock turned midnight into 1April 1974, police officers across the …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – Diversity part two
Earlier this week, I began talking about the very broad topic of diversity. Here’s part two, as diversity understandably has several very unique strands that all warrant a mention in their own right. Sexuality In the early 1970s it was something that wasn’t spoken about at all. Gay and lesbian officers went to great lengths …
Buckle up, this is a longer read than my earlier blog posts, as the very broad topic of diversity understandably has several very unique strands that all warrant a mention in their own right. At the beginning of policing, all police officers were white men. This was not simply down to policing being exclusive and …
Diary of a Heritage Manager – #Weare50: ‘Did they even have computers in 1974?’
The short answer is yes. Yes they did. Only two mind: Command and Control and a very early version of PNC, which only had the vehicle module at this time. Everything else was done on paper and via telephone. One comment from one of our retired officers made me chuckle: Howard Richards recalled “If you …
#WeAre50 | Whistle saves Birmingham officer’s life
Lying stricken on the ground, drifting in and out of consciousness and with a nine inch knife embedded in his back, PC Gordon Law knew he had one last chance – he reached for his whistle in his uniform pocket and desperately blew for help. That would be the last time an officer in Birmingham …
#WeAre50 | Policing the digital age – Celebrating technological advancements
We are two months into our 50th anniversary of West Midlands Police. Throughout February, we will be discussing how technology has changed over 50 years and how it has impacted the way we police today. From whistles and police boxes, to contact centres and mobility devices, the world of policing and crime looks very different …
Share your knowledge and passion for policing
We’re looking for enthusiastic, positive, and creative individuals to join their volunteer family. In particular, we’re keen to recruit volunteers to support our award-winning education team to help with school visits in the week. It’s been five whole terms since the Lock-up opened and in this time, we have provided 141 school visits, 3 school …
