Humberside PCC announces preferred candidate for next chief constable
Humberside’s police and crime commissioner (PCC) has named Chris Todd as his preferred candidate for the next chief constable of Humberside Police following the recent selection process.
Jonathan Evison said Mr Todd, currently assistant chief constable at the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), was “unanimously endorsed by the selection panel” following a shortlist of three candidates.
“After a rigorous recruitment process, I am confident that Chris Todd has the experience, capability and ambition to continue to drive the force forward on its journey of continuous improvement,” said Mr Evison.
Mr Todd will now attend a confirmation hearing with the Humberside Police and Crime Panel in March.
Mr Evison added: “Humberside Police has risen to become the highest performing force in the country, with an outstanding grading in the latest PEEL report.
“The inspection highlighted investigating crime, as ‘requires improvement’ and this is something T/Chief Constable Judi Heaton has been working hard to address.
“The force has been under excellent guardianship during Chief Constable Heaton’s leadership and I want to record my thanks to her for stepping into the role and providing the much needed stability and support to the force.
“The public have benefitted from improved performance during her tenure and I will be challenging Chris Todd to continue this trajectory for the force so that the public continue to see sustainable improvements in service.”
Commenting on his selection, Mr Todd said: “I am incredibly humbled and proud to be offered the opportunity to become the next chief constable of Humberside Police. Everything I have seen and all the encounters I have had with officers and staff so far fill me with excitement at the prospect. I am looking forward now to getting stuck into the hard work ahead and getting to meet all my new colleagues.”
Mr Todd graduated as a civil engineer from the University of Birmingham in 1989 and having worked briefly in industry, joined the police in Hong Kong in 1990. He worked in a number of roles there before specialising in counter narcotics and returning to join West Midlands Police in 1996.
He was later seconded to the National Crime Squad as a sergeant before transferring to the Serious Organised Crime Agency and later the National Crime Agency through to the rank of superintendent; leading multi-agency national and global investigations focused on serious organised crime.
He returned to West Midlands Police in 2014 on promotion to chief superintendent and commanded local policing units, the Intelligence Department, the Professional Standards Department and Counter Corruption. He was temporary assistant chief constable of operations within West Midlands Police before attending the Strategic Command Course in 2021 after which he was appointed assistant chief constable at the PSNI in March 2022. He was appointed as deputy chief constable on a temporary basis from October 2023 until December 2024.
He has a Masters degree from the University of Central Lancashire in cybercrime investigations. Having delivered the first data science capability for UK policing in West Midlands Police he was asked to take on the National Police Chief Councils’ lead for data analytics and continues to hold that portfolio. He is also a Strategic Firearms Commander, Public Order Gold Commander, and CBRN Gold Commander.