Authorised firearms officer (AFO)
A term from the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice (APP), reproduced under the Open Government Licence with a link back to the authoritative source.
Definition
A police officer who has been selected, trained, accredited and authorised to carry a firearm operationally.
This definition is drawn from the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice. For the full operational guidance and current wording, read it at source.
Related terms
Armed response vehicles (ARV)
Vehicles equipped for armed policing operations.
Command structure
The organizational framework for authority and responsibility during armed deployment.
Mobile armed support to surveillance (MASTS)
Support provided during covert operations requiring armed resources.
National Police Firearms Training Curriculum (NPFTC)
Not hyperlinked, access is restricted to authorised members of the police service.
Protection and Vulnerability Mitigation (PVM) arrangements
Measures taken to ensure the safety of protected individuals based on assessed threats.
Reason to suppose
The level of knowledge required to justify AFO deployment, set lower than actual justification for firearm use.
Definition reproduced from the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See the source link above for the authoritative, current wording.