Birmingham Special Constabulary Reserve info please
 

I haven't been able to find out any information online about the Birmingham Special Constabulary Reserve. Does anyone know the answers to the following ?
A) When and why did the use of the wording ' Special Constabulary Reserve' come into use on the cap badge?
B) When did the use of the scroll cease on the badge?
C) Were the badges ever modified officially, by having the scroll removed? The reason for this last question is because, while searching for info online, I came across a badge described as a small Birmingham City Police badge ' officially' modified from the Special badge. The badge shown was definitely of a specials badge, with the dot at the centre bottom of the circle, rather than the diamond shape. Unfortunately only the front of the badge was shown so it was impossible to see if someone had just removed the scroll and filed it smooth or not. The badge was KC.
Thanks
Billyh.

The term "Special Constabulary Reserve" was used by Birmingham from about the start of the Great War through to 1974 when the City Police ceased to exist.

There are about four or five different patterns of cap badge. That said, all follow the basic design with scroll at the bottom. The earlier cap badges have "Special Constable" on the scroll.

During the second world war, the City Police stores removed the scroll from a large number of KC SC cap badges, and issued the altered badge to War Reserve Constables and members of the WAPC etc. Their stocks of the SC cap badges must have been large and this expedient was thought to have been adopted to preserve the stock of regular force cap badges.

Dave.

Thanks for that great bit of information Dave
Billyh