Basic command units
Part of: Behind the frontline
Basic command units (BCUs) are local policing areas in England and Wales. They may also be called a division, area, local policing unit or local policing team.
Between 2004 and 2010, HMICFRS conducted a nationwide rolling programme of BCU inspections.
The BCU inspections aimed to:
- promote effective leadership
- share best practice
- identify inefficiencies
- provide pointers to enhance performance; and
- strengthen the capacity for self improvement.
BCUs vary in size from over 1000 officers to just under 100; some serve densely populated cities, while others cover vast tracts of sparsely populated countryside. All BCUs focus on working with partner agencies in order to reduce crime.