In response to past violence in the streets of Britain, British police are fast changing. Instead of the image of the avuncular bobby on the "beat" elite Special Patrol Units are being formed in each police division, highly mobile and trained weekly in the use of firearms, and drilled in the use of riot control equipment and the management of street violence. No longer the passive force they used to be, Britain's police are becoming a highly technological force with the use of sophisticated computer networks, and specialised electronic methods of crime detection.
This has provoked in Britain a vigorous debate, questioning whether the direction they are going is in fact the right one. People argue that this new highly agressive form of policing is provoking more of the type of street violence which it seeks to dispel. The Police are the first line of defence against public disorder especially crimes of violence and political terrorism. To counter them requires special men and techniques - which is why in the 1970's forces around the country, they began training "Supercops", members of an elite specialist unit often armed, operating on the fire brigade principal. These photos were taken of the Special Operations Unit of the Nottinghamshire Police, they can be armed up and at the scene of an accident in under 30 minutes. 1981.