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The Special Constabulary has a long history. Paid police officers were not introduced until 1829, but the idea of investing members of the public with special powers to give unpaid assistance in enforcing the law and keeping the peace can be traced back to the 13th century. In 1831 the Special Constables Act formalise this and enabled Justices of the Peace to recruit Special Constables. A second Act in 1923 saw the development of Special Constabularies as bodies of permanent trained reserves. Then, in 1964, the Police Act established the Special Constabulary as the disciplined and highly organised service that it is today.