Essex Police Chief Superintendent Michelle Dunn has been appointed as the new Assistant Chief Constable for Hertfordshire Constabulary.
The first ‘Chief Officer’ to be appointed through a process which involved representatives of the three Chief Constables in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire, ACC Dunn’s role will primarily involve leading the three-force Operational Support Project for the Strategic Alliance.
The Operational Support Project involves looking at how the three forces will deliver call handling (999 and 101 calls), custody arrangements and criminal justice. The work of the project will impact upon more than 600 police officers and staff working across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.
The final interview panel comprised Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd, Bedfordshire Chief Constable Colette Paul, Cambridgeshire Deputy Chief Constable Alec Wood and Andy Bliss, Chief Constable for Hertfordshire Constabulary.
Chief Constable Andy Bliss said, “We have taken a different approach to recruiting this post because each force and their Police and Crime Commissioners have a critical role in shaping how services will be delivered in the future.
“Michelle is the right person for this role and I am delighted with her appointment. Her knowledge and understanding of operational policing is first class. She brings a wealth of experience which, I am sure, will serve the three forces very well as we move forward with our further collaboration plans.”
Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd said, “This is an important role and I am delighted that a candidate of Michelle’s quality has applied and been appointed. Greater collaboration will allow Police and Crime Commissioners the opportunity to deliver local policing even more effectively.”
ACC Dunn has spent her entire service with Essex Police and her last position was Chief of Staff for the Command Team based at Chelmsford. Formerly a biology and PE teacher she joined Essex Police in 1992 and has served a variety of roles including Commander of Stansted Airport, Divisional Commander for Central Division (which covers Braintree, Chelmsford, Uttlesford and Maldon) and had a secondment to the Home Office in the Police Performance Unit.
She said, “I am absolutely delighted to take up this role working for three excellent forces. I am looking forward to what I know will be a challenging role bringing together some really important elements of policing that have a direct impact on the public and the service we provide. I am committed to working with officers and police staff from all three counties in the months ahead as the plans begins to take shape.”
