English and Welsh Police Law Explained
Sep 29, 2026 · 12 min · 11 segments
In this weeks episode we look at the more serious Public Order Act 1968 offence of affray, under section 3. You can find today's legislation at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1986/64/section/3
A person is guilty of a fray if they use or threaten unlawful violence towards another person and their conduct is such that it would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for their personal safety.
therefore there are two key aspects to consider firstly the use or threat of unlawful violence and secondly whether the conduct is sufficiently serious that it would cause the required level of fear for personal safety the reference to a person of reasonable firmness introduces an objective test it questions not simply whether the particular person involved was actually frightened by what happened Instead, the court considers whether the conduct would cause a person of reasonable firmness, if present at the scene, to fear for their personal safety.
This means the circumstances and overall behaviour of the defendant are important when deciding whether the threshold for affray has been reached.
Section 3.2 deals with the circumstances where two or more people use or threaten unlawful violence.
such as a group of people fighting.
It states that, when applying Section 3.1, it is the conduct of those people taken together that must be considered.
This means that the actions of each individual can be considered as part of an overall situation, rather than necessarily looking at each person's particular conduct completely separately.
For example, if two people are involved in a confrontation and both use or threaten unlawful violence, courts can consider their combined conduct when deciding whether the circumstances would cause that person of reasonable firmness to fear for their personal safety.
The important point is that Section 3.2 allows the conduct of multiple people to be considered collectively when determining whether the requirements of Section 3.1 have been met.
A person is guilty of a fray if they use or threaten unlawful violence towards another person and their conduct is such that it would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for their personal safety.
therefore there are two key aspects to consider firstly the use or threat of unlawful violence and secondly whether the conduct is sufficiently serious that it would cause the required level of fear for personal safety the reference to a person of reasonable firmness introduces an objective test it questions not simply whether the particular person involved was actually frightened by what happened Instead, the court considers whether the conduct would cause a person of reasonable firmness, if present at the scene, to fear for their personal safety.
This means the circumstances and overall behaviour of the defendant are important when deciding whether the threshold for affray has been reached.
Section 3.2 deals with the circumstances where two or more people use or threaten unlawful violence.
such as a group of people fighting.
It states that, when applying Section 3.1, it is the conduct of those people taken together that must be considered.
This means that the actions of each individual can be considered as part of an overall situation, rather than necessarily looking at each person's particular conduct completely separately.
For example, if two people are involved in a confrontation and both use or threaten unlawful violence, courts can consider their combined conduct when deciding whether the circumstances would cause that person of reasonable firmness to fear for their personal safety.
The important point is that Section 3.2 allows the conduct of multiple people to be considered collectively when determining whether the requirements of Section 3.1 have been met.
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