Dorset County Constabulary was formed in 1855. On 1 October 1967 it merged with Bournemouth Borough Police to form Dorset and Bournemouth Constabulary. On 1 April 1974 this force took over some areas (mainly Christchurch and its hinterland) from Hampshire Constabulary and acquired its present name.

In 1965, Dorset County Constabulary had an establishment of 544 and an actual strength of 466.

51% of Dorset's 687,000 Population reside in 5% of the area, which is the conurbations of Poole and Bournemouth. Within the tourist season this number rises by another 300,000.

As of April 2008, the force was divided into two Divisions: Bournemouth and Poole (sometimes known as the Conurbation) Division and Dorset County Division (consisting of the rest of Dorset, stretching from Lyme Regis in the west, to Gillingham in the north and Walkford in the east of the county). This restructuring is in line with force policy of recreating a "Neighbourhood-led police force" and matches up with the local council's wards, to monitor local statistics.

Dorset Police often work with other organisations to assist in emergencies, such as Dorset Search and Rescue who assist in the search and recovery of missing persons.

The Chief Constable is Debbie Simpson.

In a typical day Dorset Police face (based on December 2006 figures):

CID is based at Dorset's headquarters and provides advice to all policing units on crime-related matters and maintaining a corporate approach to reducing crime, as well as providing specialist and investigative roles. The despartment is split into six sub-departments including, Child Protection Investigation, Scientific Support, Intelligence, Fraud Squad, Special Squad and HOLMES.

Dorset Police is responsible for policing sections of 14 'A' roads including A338, A35, A350, A354 and A37. There are no motorways located within Dorset.

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Wikipedia