Celebrating 50 years as a force
GWENT Police are celebrating their 50th birthday by sharing pictures and stories from their past.
Announcing their step back in time, a spokeswoman for the force said: “We’re proud to announce this month we turn the grand age of 50.
“This week we are taking a trip down memory lane to celebrate 50 years of Gwent Police.
“Over the past few months officers serving and retired came together to share their memories and experiences about life in the force over the decades.
“It is hard to imagine where the time has gone, but the force has changed tremendously over the years.
“Technology has advanced to transform how we work today and assist us to solve crimes quicker – however our passion and commitment to keep our communities safe has remained.
“We invite people to follow our #50yearsofGP campaign and celebrate this milestone with us and see how far the force has progressed through the ages.”
As part of the celebration the force will be sending out posts on Facebook and Twitter with pictures from the past including vintage police cars and quirky old equipment.
Gwent Police was formed on April, 1, 1967 as a result of a government decision to reduce the number of police forces in England and Wales. This resulted in Newport Borough Police and Monmouthshire Constabulary being amalgamated to form Gwent Police.
Initially there were six operational divisions, but the next year the force reorganised into a new structure. This comprised three territorial divisions with a separate headquarters division.
During 1996, as a result of local government reorganisation in Wales, changes to the local authority boundaries led to Gwent Police taking responsibility for policing the Rhymney Valley from South Wales Police.
In April 2015 more changes were made to the structure of the force.
Neighbourhood Policing was organised into two Local Policing Areas – one in the east covering Newport and Monmouthshire and one in the west covering Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen.
The force now covers an area of 600 square miles from Abergavenny in the north to Newport in the south, Chepstow in the east, and Caerphilly in the west.