Civic Officers act in more than six million instances over ten years of service
Barcelona’s Civic Officers have been operating for ten years, working for respect and coexistence in the city. The unit was created in 2015 and over the last decade has acted on more than six million occasions, in exceptional moments such as the pandemic, when they provided support at vaccination centres, or in the special rollout within the framework of the Pla Endreça.
Extra Civic Officers
When the Civic Officers unit was created it addressed the need to work for harmony in areas affected by mass tourism, yet a decade on these professionals are now established as a key element for guaranteeing respect and coexistence in the city. Their work today makes Barcelona a friendlier, safer and more orderly space for residents and visitors alike.
Model based on education
Civic Officers work in coordination with the City Police and the City Council, always acting with an educational and familiar perspective, emphasising dialogue, sensitivity and the desire to generate awareness and joint responsibility between people. To achieve this, their task is to inform people clearly about the rules of coexistence, request a change of attitude where needed and warn people of the possibility of the City Police intervening.
According to the figures for 2024, a year when officers acted in more than 330,000 cases in public space, the most common types of anti-social attitudes were people crossing the road away from pedestrian crossings; taking up bike lanes; the circulation of bicycles and PMVs on pavements and the regulation of tourist groups. Other cases include nudism or near nudism, unauthorised hawking and other inadequate forms of using bike lanes etc.
A decade on the streets
With nearly 6.7 million accumulated actions, the service has provided a constant presence on the streets, listening, offering guidance and strengthening coexistence. Places such as the Sagrada Família, with nearly 1.9 million actions, and Citizen Help and Information Offices (OAC), with 2 million actions, are examples of this constant activity. Other figures include 500,000 actions in the Barceloneta neighbourhood and 8,000 in Trinita Vella, highlighting their versatility and roots around the city.
Beyond the figures, the value of this unit has become particularly evident at exceptional moments. During the pandemic, civic officers played an essential part in the everyday management of public space, facilitating compliance with rules and providing support for mass vaccination campaigns. Last summer, the service also formed part of the special operation linked to the Pla Endreça and stepped up its presence at strategic points in the city to promote the proper use of public space, identify bad practice in waste management and work for coexistence in neighbourhoods with the most residential and tourist pressure.
