National Police Memorial

The National Police Memorial stands in the City of Westminster, at the corner of The Mall and Horse Guards Road. It was designed by Lord Foster of Thames Bank and Per Arnoldi and unveiled in 2005. The site once held an air shaft for the London Underground’s Bakerloo line. A black rectangular enclosure of Purbeck stone surrounds the shaft, with one face left bare for the police badge and the inscription ‘The National Police Memorial: Honouring Those Who Serve’. A glass column rises from a reflecting pool nearby, internally lit by fibre optic cables in faint blue light. The memorial commemorates about 4,000 police officers killed in the line of duty across the United Kingdom. Michael Winner founded the Police Memorial Trust in 1984 after the shooting of Yvonne Fletcher, later donating £500,000 to the campaign. The total cost of £2.3 million was raised through public collection, with construction finishing £400,000 under budget. Queen Elizabeth unveiled the memorial in 2005 alongside Prime Minister Tony Blair and other political leaders. A guard of honour was formed by 56 officers in the uniforms of every UK police force. Visitors find the Roll of Honour behind a glass panel in the enclosure, listing names from 1680 to the present. The glass column stands 7.4 metres high, made of 622 stacked sheets of glass with a total surface area of 954 square metres. The terrace of Purbeck stone links the two elements, offering a quiet space for reflection. The memorial’s location in The Mall places it where national life often passes, encouraging passers-by to pause and remember.