page_title: Warrant card
section_title: Special Constabulary
hierarchical_section_title: Warrant card / United Kingdom / Special Constabulary
caption_attribution_description: English: West Midlands Police Museum
context_page_description: A warrant card is proof of identification and authority carried by police officers and some other law enforcement officers including immigration officers. The term is normally used only within the United Kingdom and in current and former Commonwealth countries. Many other countries refer to their equivalent of warrant cards simply as police credentials, commission books, or identification cards. In the UK MI5 officers also have warrant cards. Specially trained mental health practitioners called Approved Mental Health Professional are also warranted council officers and carry warrant cards when acting under the Mental Health Act 1983.
  Warrant cards generally include a photograph of the holder as well as the holder's name, rank, warrant number and a holographic emblem to mark authenticity. The warrant number is equivalent to a badge number in other police services; it is a unique identifier unlike a collar number which may change when transferring between departments or changing rank. A warrant card is sometimes displayed alongside a badge showing the service to which the officer belongs, but is increasingly commonly displayed on one ID card, with the force crest printed on it.
context_section_description: Special constables are sworn officers as a Crown servant and have the same powers as regular officers. As such, they also carry a warrant card. "Special Constable" may be printed on the card along with, or instead of, "Police Officer".
caption: A warrant card issued to a special constable in Wolverhampton in 1954
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