FOI/1820 Match Day Policing
Provision of information held by Northumbria Police made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the 'Act')
Thank you for your email received on the 8 November 2025 in which you made a request for access to certain information which may be held by Northumbria Police.
As you may be aware the purpose of the Act is to allow a general right of access to information held at the time of a request, by a Public Authority (including the Police), subject to certain limitations and exemptions.
We have now had the opportunity to fully consider your request, and we provide a response for your attention.
Following receipt of your request, searches were conducted with the Finance Department of Northumbria Police. We can confirm that the information you have requested is held in part by Northumbria Police.
We are able to disclose the located information to you as follows.
You asked:
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I would like to request the following information held by Northumbria Police. For each of the financial years from 2014/15 until 2024/25, and 2025/26 up to Nov 6, if available.
1. The total cost to the force of policing professional or semi-professional football matches (including league, cup and play-off fixtures and any associated match-day policing operations).
We do not hold the total cost of policing football matches. Work by officers and staff will have been undertaken as part of their duties and these normal hour costs are not recorded for the purpose of Football matches. Accordingly, no information is held in relation to your query at this point. The information we do hold is the amount invoiced to clubs in financial years. Please see our response to points 2 and 3, below.
2. The total amount invoiced to football clubs, stadium operators, or event organisers for policing these matches.
The total amount invoiced is the same as the amount received per financial year. Accordingly, please see our response to point 3, below.
3. The total amount actually received by the force from those invoices (i.e., money recovered from clubs or organisers).
Thank you for your email received on the 8 November 2025 in which you made a request for access to certain information which may be held by Northumbria Police.
As you may be aware the purpose of the Act is to allow a general right of access to information held at the time of a request, by a Public Authority (including the Police), subject to certain limitations and exemptions.
We have now had the opportunity to fully consider your request, and we provide a response for your attention.
Following receipt of your request, searches were conducted with the Finance Department of Northumbria Police. We can confirm that the information you have requested is held in part by Northumbria Police.
We are able to disclose the located information to you as follows.
You asked:
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I would like to request the following information held by Northumbria Police. For each of the financial years from 2014/15 until 2024/25, and 2025/26 up to Nov 6, if available.
1. The total cost to the force of policing professional or semi-professional football matches (including league, cup and play-off fixtures and any associated match-day policing operations).
We do not hold the total cost of policing football matches. Work by officers and staff will have been undertaken as part of their duties and these normal hour costs are not recorded for the purpose of Football matches. Accordingly, no information is held in relation to your query at this point. The information we do hold is the amount invoiced to clubs in financial years. Please see our response to points 2 and 3, below.
2. The total amount invoiced to football clubs, stadium operators, or event organisers for policing these matches.
The total amount invoiced is the same as the amount received per financial year. Accordingly, please see our response to point 3, below.
3. The total amount actually received by the force from those invoices (i.e., money recovered from clubs or organisers).
| Year | Amount received |
| 2015/16 | £544,028.83 |
| 2016/17 | £523,667.17 |
| 2017/18 | £518,260.73 |
| 2018/19 | £449,008.01 |
| 2019/20 | £338,592.86 |
| 2020/21 | £0.00 |
| 2021/22 | £294,772.70 |
| 2022/23 | £538,445.12 |
| 2023/24 | £879,587.03 |
| 2024/25 | £793,056.34 |
| 2025/26* | £487,660.09 |
* 2025/26 data is correct to 31 Oct 2025.
4. Any written policy, guidance, or procedure used by the force to determine when and how football clubs are charged for policing services.
As the information you have requested at point 4 is accessible by other means we have not provided you with a copy of the information and will rely on Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. You should therefore consider this a refusal notice for this part of your request.
We have provided an explanation to this exemption below.
Section 21 (1) - Information accessible by other means
Information which is reasonably accessible to the applicant is exempt information.
The information you have requested is freely available, for all to view, as it is published on the NPCC website. Football clubs are invoiced in accordance with the NPCC Guidelines on Charging for Police Services. In order to aid and assist you further we have provided a link to the relevant page below:
NPCC Charging Guidelines
4. Any written policy, guidance, or procedure used by the force to determine when and how football clubs are charged for policing services.
As the information you have requested at point 4 is accessible by other means we have not provided you with a copy of the information and will rely on Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. You should therefore consider this a refusal notice for this part of your request.
We have provided an explanation to this exemption below.
Section 21 (1) - Information accessible by other means
Information which is reasonably accessible to the applicant is exempt information.
The information you have requested is freely available, for all to view, as it is published on the NPCC website. Football clubs are invoiced in accordance with the NPCC Guidelines on Charging for Police Services. In order to aid and assist you further we have provided a link to the relevant page below:
NPCC Charging Guidelines