The Hydrant Programme

The Hydrant Programme (or Hydrant) is a United Kingdom policing policy and support service formed in August 2022 as part of the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), funded by the Home Office. It provides analysis, information, research and learning in relation to sexual abuse, as well as facilitating communications between police forces and other organisations across the UK dealing with sex crime and child protection. The London Metropolitan Police Service are the host force for the programme.

The service was originally created by the NPCC as Operation Hydrant in June 2014. This provided co-ordination, support and guidance to the police after it became apparent that forces around the country were investigating a significant number of potentially overlapping allegations of past child sexual offenses following the Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal. It dealt primarily with cases concerning persons of public prominence, or with offences which took place within institutional settings such as hospitals, care homes and schools. The service did not carry out individual investigations, as these were conducted by the relevant local police forces.