You or a vehicle that you are in can be stopped and searched if a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that you are carrying drugs, weapons, stolen property, or items that could be used to commit a crime.
The officer searching you must explain why you are being searched, what they are looking for, and what law you are being searched under. They must tell you their name or ID (or "collar") number and the police station where they are based. The police officer must offer you a receipt with details of the search.
The police officer will ask you to identify your ethnicity within preset categories. This allows the public and the police to monitor whether stop and search powers are being used fairly, proportionately and effectively.
The police officer should treat you respectfully, professionally and with dignity throughout the search. For more information about stop and search, see this leaflet.
Was this article helpful?
That’s Great!
Thank you for your feedback
Sorry! We couldn't be helpful
Thank you for your feedback
Feedback sent
We appreciate your effort and will try to fix the article