In 1984, following the shooting of Yvonne Fletcher, film director Michael Winner founded the Police Memorial Trust.

[1] From the mid-1990s, the trust also lobbied and raised funds for a single, larger scale memorial to commemorate all police officers who had died in the course of their duties.

[2] Winner stated that "Memorials to soldiers, sailors and airmen are commonplace, but the police fight a war with no beginning and no end".

[4] On 22 July 2004, a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony took place on the site, performed by Prime Minister Tony Blair, Michael Winner, and officers from the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police, representing the two forces with the highest number of officers killed in the line of duty.

[3] Michael Howard and Charles Kennedy, the leaders of the UK's other leading political parties at the time, were also present.

[16] The book is compiled from the approximately 4,000 names recorded by the Police Roll of Honour Trust,[17] listing all officers who have died in the line of duty.

[20] Concern was also raised by some Irish republicans that the memorial includes the names of those RUC officers killed in The Troubles.