JB-15.19 Response Accepted

Guidance on uniformity of firearms commands

Recommendation

Advice should be given by the College of Policing about the benefits of uniformity in instructions and commands. Ultimate discretion as to what is said must be left to the CTSFOs, based on the situation that confronts them, but the protocol should encourage agreement to be reached on the command/instruction that is to be given.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- The Metropolitan Police Service stated on 28 October 2022 that it was in consultation with the College of Policing on uniformity of commands and instructions (MPS Response to Jermaine Baker Inquiry, October 2022).
- The College of Policing updated APP-AP in August 2023 incorporating guidance on uniformity of instructions and commands for CTSFOs, while preserving operational discretion (College of Policing APP-AP update, August 2023).
Sources
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
This recommendation asks for cultural or behavioural change, which is difficult to verify from published sources alone. The evidence above reflects policy commitments rather than measured outcomes.
Jurisdiction
England
Section Reference
15.19
Response
Accepted
Accepted Metropolitan Police Service
28 Oct 2022

MPS formally responded on 28 October 2022 (para 37). MPS in consultation with College of Policing on uniformity of commands and instructions.

Read Full Response
Progress Timeline
Official Report
01 Aug 2023

Status as of College of Policing APP-AP update (August 2023): Completed

Source
Source
Inquiry Jermaine Baker Inquiry
Report Report into the Death of Jermaine Baker 05 Jul 2022
View Source
Responsible Bodies
College of Policing Primary
Themes & Tags
Staff training and development Incident commander communication training Armed Policing Training Communication
Recommendation age 3.9 yrs
Last formal update 1034 days ago