Police Commissioner appoints new Chief Constable for Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire police has a new man in charge following the announcement of Nick Dean as the county's chief constable.

Police and Crime Commissioner, Jason Ablewhite announced Nick is to step up from the role of deputy chief constable in Norfolk, a post he has held since 2016, following a meeting of the police and crime panel. He will start the job at the end of September when current Chief Constable Alec Wood steps down.

Commenting on the appointment, the Commissioner said: “I am delighted to be able to appoint Nick Dean as the new Chief Constable for Cambridgeshire.

“When I set out on this process, it was important that I recruited a Chief Officer who could bring the vision, determination and resilience required to lead the Constabulary. Nick performed very well throughout the whole assessment process and demonstrated great leadership skills. His understanding and inclusive approach to partnership working puts him in a good place to support the priorities in my Police and Crime Plan.

“As a visionary Chief Constable, Nick will build on the excellent work undertaken by his predecessor, Alec Wood, to continuously innovate and improve the quality of the county’s police service whilst also protecting our communities and meeting public expectations. His energy and passion will help us meet the challenges ahead.”

Nick’s distinguished career began at Norfolk Constabulary in 1992 following serving the Royal Air Force in Norfolk.

Deputy Chief Constable since September 2016, one of Nick’s biggest successes was to develop and implement Norfolk’s Ethics and Integrity Board which received praise from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services in their recent inspection programme. Nick was also responsible for overseeing Norfolk’s new policing model and has continued to lead on the county’s response to rural crime.

Before that, Nick led the County Policing Command of some 1,000 personnel covering six geographic policing districts as Chief Superintendent, between December 2011 and June 2013, and was Assistant Chief Constable until 2016. During that time, he was responsible for Local Policing which included the County Policing Command and Safeguarding and Investigations Commands. He was also an active member in a number of partnership boards.

Nick said: “It is a privilege to be appointed the next Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire. Throughout the process I have been made to feel welcome and look forward to building on the leadership provided by Alec Wood over the past few years. It is both an exciting and challenging opportunity and one which I am really looking forward to. Cambridgeshire is an excellent force and although sorry to leave Norfolk, I am know that I am inheriting a professional and committed organisation who have the communities of Cambridgeshire in their hearts.”