These data are not available for 1996, data for 2006 are given in the table.
Number Avon and Somerset 215 Bedfordshire 81 Cambridgeshire 99 Cheshire 85 Cleveland 61 Cumbria 111 Derbyshire 119 Devon and Cornwall 215 Dorset 81 Durham 105 Essex 243 Gloucestershire 73 Greater Manchester 342 Hampshire 240 Hertfordshire 149 Humberside 181 Kent 116 Lancashire 197 Leicestershire 77 Lincolnshire 102 London, City of 24 Merseyside 138 Metropolitan Police 603 Norfolk 112 Northamptonshire 63 Northumbria 167 North Yorkshire 97 Nottinghamshire 134 South Yorkshire 141 Staffordshire 28 Suffolk 80 Surrey 99 Sussex 160 Thames Valley 236 Warwickshire 97 West Mercia 116 West Midlands 401 West Yorkshire 343 Wiltshire 13 1 Staff with multiple responsibilities (or designations) are recorded under their primary role or function. The deployment of police officers is an operational matter for individual chief constables. 2 Data are not available prior to 2002-03. 3 Full-time equivalent. This figure includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave.