Rachel Kearton will join Suffolk Police this summer as Assistant Chief Constable (ACC), leading local policing.
Commenting on the appointment, Temporary Chief Constable Gareth Wilson said, “Rachel is an exceptional candidate and I’m delighted to welcome her to Suffolk Police and to the command team. She has a wealth of experience in policing and a real drive to draw on this to ensure Suffolk Constabulary continues to deliver an excellent service to the public.
“Rachel’s appointment provides additional skills and resilience to the Chief Officer Team which is well placed to lead the organisation through this period of transformation.”
ACC Kearton has more than 20 years’ policing experience, serving in West Yorkshire Police before joining Northumbria Police in 2007. She has worked in a variety of roles including as head of Northumbria’s specialist uniform policing services, leading units including roads policing, the dog section and firearms, as area policing commander in two separate districts and head of Northumbria’s Human Resources Department.
She joins Suffolk Constabulary from her most recent role on secondment with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office based in Turkey.
Speaking after her appointment Rachel said, “I am thrilled to have been given this opportunity to work for Suffolk Constabulary and to bring my experience from working for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office back into policing.
“I hope others may take encouragement from my appointment to Assistant Chief Constable, to know that different ways of working are valued within policing in order to deliver the best service possible to the people of Suffolk.”
The news follows the recent appointment of ACC Steve Jupp from Nottinghamshire Police who joins the command team as temporary DCC from 27 April.
Temporary ACC David Skevington, who has supported the Chief Officer Team since the retirement of Tim Newcomb in 2013, will remain in post pending ACC Kearton’s arrival.
