New ‘contemporary’ Garda uniform revealed
Delivery of the new operational uniform will start this week (Image: An Garda Síochána)

New ‘contemporary’ Garda uniform revealed

NEW uniforms will be delivered to frontline operational gardai in the coming weeks, An Garda Síochana revealed today.

The new operational uniform will be delivered to more than 13,000 uniform members of An Garda Síochána, including in excess of 560 Garda stations nationwide.

According to An Garda Síochána, the new uniform is ‘contemporary’ incorporating elements such as ‘durability, protection and functionality’.

The need for a new, practical operational uniform emerged as key finding of an internal Garda Cultural audit in 2018, to which more than 6,500 members of An Garda Síochána contributed.

The new uniform will consist of a two tone soft shell jacket, two tone waterproof jacket, Garda blue polo shirt, operational trousers and practical base layers.

The Garda Commissioner will announce a formal ‘go-live’ date, expected to be March 2022, when the new uniform will be used for daily duties.

The New Uniform Project has been ongoing with An Garda Síochána since 2018 following its pilot in Tallaght, Bunclody and Henry Street stations.

This pilot project involved nearly 200 frontline gardai.

The new operational uniform (Image: An Garda Síochána)

The new Garda uniform is also a key recommendation outlined in the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland Report, A Police Service For Our Future.

According to a Garda spokesperson, as An Garda Síochána approaches the 100th anniversary of its establishment, this is only the third time in that century that a formal upgrade of the Garda uniform has taken place.

The current uniform cap will remain in operation as a unique and distinctive element of the Garda uniform.

An extensive delivery schedule is now in place, starting in the Dublin region.

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