Policing in Essex

Essex Police look after those who live, work, and visit Essex. The Chief Constable is Ben-Julian Harrington.

Essex borders Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Kent, as well as four London boroughs. It covers 1,405 square miles (3,639 square kilometres). It has a population of around 1.85 million people, making it the fifth most populated county in England.

We have three cities in Essex, Chelmsford, Colchester and Southend, as well as several large towns and many rural villages. The county's key roads including the M25, M11, A12, A127 and A13. We also have one of the largest coastlines in the UK.

There are two airports - London Stansted and London Southend - as well as lots of airfields. We have an extensive rail network with 80 stations, including seven on the London Underground.

Essex also has two major ports – Harwich International Port and the Port of Tilbury.

The Dartford River Crossing links Essex and Kent and has more than 51 million vehicles use it every year. That's a daily average of 140,405 users.

The Southend and Harlow districts have the highest population density per square mile. Uttlesford and Maldon districts have the lowest.

Find out more about policing where you live.

We have lots of specialist units who support our local policing teams.

These units help people across the county and have specialist skills and equipment. Assistance could be in the form of our Police Dog Section helping to search for a criminal's well-hidden drugs. Our Roads Policing Unit responding and investigating a collision on the road. Or our Business Crime Team working with local retailers to prevent shop theft.

Find out more about some of our specialist teams on the About us page.