Specialist Operations

Diplomatic Protection Group

• What we do
• Our history
• Training

Training

Officers from the DPG are highly skilled and professional armed officers. To maintain their level of skills and professional expertise they require a variety of training courses on a regular basis. These include:

• Armed Response
• Officer Safety
• Driving Courses
• Overt Protection

Officers will usually spend their first seven days on a ‘static protection officers’ course. This includes training in:

• Overt and covert armed protection
• The various alarm systems
• Dealing with diplomats and the law
• Tactical awareness
• Officer safety
• Emergency life support
• Armed residential and hospital guards

There is an introduction to the roles of the residential protection officers, the Security Liaison Unit and the Intelligence Unit, along with lectures by guest speakers from the Firearms Command, Protection Command, and Explosives Officers.

• Training for officers responsible for covert protection at hotels, working with the Protection Command when visiting heads of state and other dignitaries assessed at being at risk stay in London.

Training for officers responsible for covert protection at hotels, working with the Protection Command when visiting heads of state and other dignitaries assessed at being at risk stay in London.

The course requires students to have passed an advanced shooting test and the service fitness test. It also includes training on hotel reconnaissance, escorts and the protection of the 'principal' in public places. There is additional first aid and officer safety training.

• First Aid

All authorised firearms officers (AFOs) receive full first aid training. This training is specifically aimed at AFOs and includes the treatment of gunshot wounds, and other ballistic injuries as well as Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).

• Police Search Advisor (POLSA)

The DPG uses trained searchers daily at Downing Street and has search responsibilities at prominent addresses and areas throughout Central London. They also supply POLSA officers to major events such as The State Opening of Parliament.

• Tactical Firearms Refresher

The DPG is the largest firearms command in Great Britain with over 700-armed officers. Refresher training is carried out regularly, depending on the requirements of the specific role.

Run by instructors from the Firearms Command and DPG, this is a two-day course that consists of theoretical and practical exercises, vehicles stops, containment, searching of buildings and suspects, ballistic first aid, casualty evacuation and post incident procedure.