English and Welsh Police Law Explained
Crossbows, Bows, and Arrows
Aug 18, 2026 · 17 min · 11 segments
In today's episode we look at the legislation used to control the use of crossbows, bows, and arrows. Todays legislation can be found at…
English and Welsh Police Law Explained
Aug 18, 2026 · 17 min · 11 segments
In today's episode we look at the legislation used to control the use of crossbows, bows, and arrows. Todays legislation can be found at…
Bows and arrows as offensive weapons There is no general offence that makes it unlawful simply to own a conventional bow and arrow and people can ordinarily possess a bow for legitimate purposes such as target archery.
However, This position may change when the bow is carried in a public place.
Section 1 of the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 makes it an offence to have an offensive weapon in a public place without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.
Under this Act, offensive weapons include articles made or adapted for causing injury or articles intended by the person carrying it to use to cause injury.
A bow can therefore fall within this legislation, depending on the circumstances and, importantly, the person's purpose in possessing it.
A person carrying a bow and arrows to an archery club, for example, may have a reasonable excuse, whereas carrying them with the intention of using them to cause injury would present a very different legal position.
This means that it would be incorrect to say that all carrying of bows and arrows in public is automatically illegal, but the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 specifically provides the concepts of lawful authority and reasonable excuse.
The circumstances will therefore matter.
When someone is transporting archery equipment for a legitimate purpose, the reason for having the equipment with them will be highly relevant.
It's also worth considering whether arrows themselves could fall within Section 139 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988.
Section 139 applies to any article that is sharply pointed and the legislation does not provide a specific list of every object that falls within this definition.
If an arrow has a pointed tip, by design, then there is an argument that it could also be considered as a sharply pointed article for the purpose of Section 139 and therefore make possessing one in public an offence.
From a policing perspective, officers should always consider the circumstances, what the person is doing with the bows or arrows, where they are and whether there is evidence that it is being carried for a crime or legitimate purposes.
Bows and arrows as offensive weapons There is no general offence that makes it unlawful simply to own a conventional bow and arrow and people can ordinarily possess a bow for legitimate purposes such as target archery.
However, This position may change when the bow is carried in a public place.
Section 1 of the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 makes it an offence to have an offensive weapon in a public place without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.
Under this Act, offensive weapons include articles made or adapted for causing injury or articles intended by the person carrying it to use to cause injury.
A bow can therefore fall within this legislation, depending on the circumstances and, importantly, the person's purpose in possessing it.
A person carrying a bow and arrows to an archery club, for example, may have a reasonable excuse, whereas carrying them with the intention of using them to cause injury would present a very different legal position.
This means that it would be incorrect to say that all carrying of bows and arrows in public is automatically illegal, but the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 specifically provides the concepts of lawful authority and reasonable excuse.
The circumstances will therefore matter.
When someone is transporting archery equipment for a legitimate purpose, the reason for having the equipment with them will be highly relevant.
It's also worth considering whether arrows themselves could fall within Section 139 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988.
Section 139 applies to any article that is sharply pointed and the legislation does not provide a specific list of every object that falls within this definition.
If an arrow has a pointed tip, by design, then there is an argument that it could also be considered as a sharply pointed article for the purpose of Section 139 and therefore make possessing one in public an offence.
From a policing perspective, officers should always consider the circumstances, what the person is doing with the bows or arrows, where they are and whether there is evidence that it is being carried for a crime or legitimate purposes.
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