File:Northern Constabulary Badge - police vehicle door decal (2905149530).jpg

1,000 views on 21st September 2012

This is the decal applied to the sides of police vehicles from 1982 onwards, which comprises a reflective version of the Force Badge of Northern Constabulary. www.northern.police.uk

Originally produced as 17 inch diameter, this was later reduced to half that size to take account of the trend towards protective rubbing-strips on vehicle doors, which meant it was impossible to properly site the large versions.

The design was the brainchild of the Force's Chief Clerk, Superintendent George I Henderson, QPM, and is an example of Celtic continuous knotwork.

Produced in black and white to reflect the colours of the police service, the centerpiece is a continuous strand, representing 24/7 service. The cross in the centre is the St Andrews "Saltire" Cross (as appears in the Scottish flag), and the four knots stand for the four Local Authorities which make up the Force area: Highland (Regional) Council, www.highland.gov.uk/ Orkney Islands, www.orkney.gov.uk/ Shetland Isles www.shetland.gov.uk/ and Western Isles (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar). www.cne-siar.gov.uk/

The Force's title and its motto "Protect and Service" - Dion is Cuidich ("protect and help") in the two languages of the Northern Constabulary Area, English and Gaelic, appear in in a circlet, surrounded by a braided border, made up of twelve braids of three strands.

The strands represent the three Divisions then in place - which also approximately equated to the three former forces which made up the force when it was created on 16th May 1975, namely the Constabularies of Northern (Caithness - Orkney - Shetland), Ross & Sutherland, and Inverness (Combined County and Burgh).

The twelve braids signify the 12 Sub Divisions of the Force (Shetland, Orkney, Caithness, Western Isles, Sutherland, Wester Ross, Easter Ross, Inverness, Nairn, Skye & Lochalsh, Badenoch & Strathspey, and Lochaber.

The insignia was worn as epaulette insignia in chromed metal and its latest version has black paint to highlight the design. A small woven (simplified) version was also issued for a time, as both epaulette insignia and on the breast pocket flap of all-weather jackets. The jacket badge was however soon superceded by a woven panel worded "POLICE".

The Force Badge also appeared on offiical documentation and letterheads, and police buildings.

In the mid 1990's the Force produced a "corporate logo" to bring the "Force Badge" up-to-date, to take account of the restructuring which saw the Divisional/Sub Divisonal (3:12) model replaced with 8 semi-autonomous Area Commands (Shetland, Orkney, Western Isles, Caithness & Sutherland, Ross Cromarty & Skye, Inverness & Nairn, Badenoch & Strathspey, and Lochaber.

This saw the centrepiece of the original badge placed on a vertical blue stripe, which was used for vehicle decals in conjunction with a yellow horizontal reflective band running the length of the vehicle.

A reduced size version of the "corporate logo" (centrepiece on stripe) decal now features on the Battenberg livery adopted by the force in 2005.