Critics say hoods to protect officers from suspects who try to spit at or bite them are ‘primitive, cruel and degrading’

Britain’s biggest police force is to allow its officers to use spit hoods on suspects within weeks, the Guardian has learned.

The Metropolitan police say the restraint devices are necessary to protect officers from prisoners who try to spit at or bite them, exposing them to the risk of serious infection.



The Met will start using them in 32 police station detention areas across London in a pilot scheme beginning in October. Initially they will not be used on the streets, where their deployment could be photographed or inflame the public.

But their use may be expanded and they could be issued to officers on street patrol if the pilot scheme is deemed by Met bosses to be a success.

The mesh hoods have proved controversial, and there have been claims that they breach a suspect’s rights. The Met had previously opposed their use, and some police chiefs have privately expressed concerns that they are reminiscent of hoods used at Guantánamo Bay.

The Met’s decision was condemned by the human rights group Amnesty International, the civil rights group Liberty and the campaign group Inquest, which helps those who claim to have suffered at police hands.

The Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers, has called for the use of the hoods to protect police. The Met calls the devices spit guards and says their deployment will be classed as a use of force by an officer.

Martha Spurrier, director of Liberty, said: “A spit hood is a primitive, cruel and degrading tool that inspires fear and anguish. We have seen many cases where the police use them unnecessarily and without justification, including on children and disabled people.

“Police have the power to use force against citizens when they have to – using handcuffs, arm restraints, leg restraints, pepper spray, batons. The suggestion that officers need to be able to cover people’s faces and heads is as far-fetched as it is frightening. Spit hoods belong in horror stories, not on the streets of a civilised society. We urge the Met police to think again.”

In a statement, the Metropolitan police service said: “The MPS does not currently use spit guards. A pilot scheme has been approved for the use of spit guards in all MPS custody units from October 2016.

“These guards will only be used in a custody situation. They are considered a ‘use of force’ and so officers are being trained to ensure that their use is proportionate and necessary in the circumstances. The use of this protective equipment is necessary to meet the duty of care owed to officers when a detainee spits at or attempts to bite them.”

The Met did not rule out a greater use of spit hoods after the pilot.

Deborah Coles, of Inquest, said: “This is an alarming development with seemingly no debate or consultation and will do nothing to assist police and community relations.

“The use of a hood as a piece of police equipment is frightening and raises real concerns about its potential for misuse against the most vulnerable and discriminated against sections of society.”

Che Donald, the lead on health and safety for the Police Federation, said: “I’d rather take a punch to the face than be spat at.”

Spitting at officers can expose them to risks of contracting hepatitis, and such incidents have led to police taking powerful anti-viral drugs, which last for three months and can cause nausea.

Donald said: “We do not deal with the most savoury people. Hepatitis is prevalent within the the drug abuse community. I don’t see it as a use of force, it is a health and safety issue.”

Donald said spit hoods should be deployed on the streets of London, saying: “If it is working in custody, why would they not take it out on the street?”

Amnesty International said: “Spit hoods can restrict breathing, create disorientation and can be dangerous and extremely distressing … Serious questions must be asked as to whether these restraints which have been criticised for breaching human rights guidelines should actually have a role in modern British policing.

“It beggars belief that the Met police would choose to introduce these restraints in their toolkit, particularly given that so many other major British police forces have chosen to outlaw them.”

The use of spit hoods had until now be confined to smaller forces. British Transport police use them, and the force is under investigation by the police watchdog after a young black man was filmed being pinned to the floor and hooded by officers.

The footage was posted on social media and led to the investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.