‘I want us to be the best we can for our people’: New Chief Constable Paul Anderson

‘PROUD’: New Humberside Police Chief Constable Paul Anderson. Pictures by Tom Arran Commercial Photography

By Simon Bristow

The new head of Britain’s best performing police force has promised a blitz on those who cause most harm in society.

Humberside Police Chief Constable Paul Anderson also said the force would remain victim-focused and continue to invest in neighbourhood policing.

He took command on August 1 having previously served as deputy chief constable, being a key part of the executive team under former Chief Constable Lee Freeman KPM that saw Humberside officially ranked as the best performing force in England and Wales last year.

Asked how he felt on his appointment, Mr Anderson said: “I think one word, proud. I’m proud to be part of this force. To watch the transformation of the force, and this is a force packed with talent and really good people who really want to make a difference. And looking at what they’ve all collectively achieved, and having a part in that over the last four years, to stay here I couldn’t be happier.”

He added: “I know what works, I know what there still is to fix, because we’re not perfect, there’s more to do, but yes, proud, that’s the word.”

Mr Anderson, who has more than 30 years experience in policing, takes over a force that has been on a remarkable journey having been in special measures just six years ago. Independent watchdog HMICFRS graded Humberside as “outstanding” in six out of nine categories in a report released last November, meaning it has the highest number of “outstanding” grades of any of the 43 police forces in England and Wales.

Asked how hard it would be to maintain those standards, Mr Anderson said: “I thought about that quite a lot. But as I was going round the force, and certainly going round the force in the last few weeks as Chief Constable – I say I’m proud, but that’s the same word I get from every member of my staff.

‘THIS FORCE IS PACKED WITH TALENT AND THEY WANT TO BE THE BEST’: Paul Anderson

“They don’t want to go back to how it was. That to me is just really, really wonderful, a great mixture of emotion and desire because they want to be the best they can be.

“I’ve got a vision of sustained excellence but that’s not about chasing a grade on a HMIC report, that’s about being the best we can for our people.”

The chief constable said his would be a listening force, and communities could help shape policing in their area by speaking to officers about their needs. As an example, he highlighted the ongoing Humber Talking initiative through which residents are invited to discuss issues face-to-face.

He said: “We’ve got an ambition we will knock on every door in Humberside – a lot of doors to go yet – but we’re doing it and we ask our communities, we ask our people, what are we doing that’s good, what are we doing that’s not so good, and where do you want us to focus in terms of crime?

“And believe me, people aren’t backwards in coming forwards, they are really forthright, and we adapt our service according to that and we do that locally. And that I’m really proud of. But also what I do know in other bits of feedback and certainly letters I get, we don’t always get it right. And we’ve got victim focus but we’ve got to look at it more as a victim journey.”

He added: “I know we let people down, I know not every person in Humberside thinks we are outstanding and until I’ve achieved that, that isn’t outstanding. So we are going to work harder, we are going to look to identify where we are letting people down, where we’re not giving the best service, and we are going to continue to evolve.

“And I’ll keep saying it, we are not perfect. But while we believe we’re not perfect that will drive us forwards.”

‘NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICING IS THE WINDOW INTO OUR COMMUNITIES’: Paul Anderson

That listening approach is also reflected through a commitment to neighbourhood policing, Mr Anderson said.

“Something I’m committed to as Chief Constable, as my predecessor Lee was, is local policing, neighbourhood policing,” he said.

“Because what it can do is where you have a bobby, you have a PCSO, that knows the local community, they know what the problems are, and they know the people to concentrate on. That’s really important because that will give something bespoke to each community. And one community’s problem isn’t a problem in another community.”

An uplift in police numbers through Government support has allowed Humberside to strengthen its resources across the vast geographical area it serves, and Mr Anderson said the policing of rural communities was just as important as inner-city areas.

He said: “We’ve reopened the response base out at Pocklington, just with a real desire to enhance that 24/7 policing response.

“We were getting feedback from our communities – take Driffield, for instance, in terms of local antisocial behaviour – and do you know what, it may be a low-level crime but it matters to them. So we’ve increased the amount of neighbourhood bobbies there.

“I’m committed now further to opening some of the rural locality bases down in Brigg, for instance. And just increasing that footprint just so everyone can get that service – it won’t just be the cities that get it. I really do get that.”

‘WE’RE GOING TO GO AFTER THOSE WHO CAUSE THE MOST HARM’: Paul Anderson, speaking to The Hull Story

He added: “Neighbourhood policing, that’s the window into our communities, that’s the window into us as well, that’s where you see the soul of a place, and I’m committed to retaining that, retaining those numbers and ring-fencing those officers. It’s an absolute must for me.”

In his first in-depth interview since becoming Chief Constable, Mr Anderson also said the increase in officer numbers would enable the proactive targeting of organised crime and of the most harmful offenders.

He told The Hull Story: “Because we’ve had an uplift we’ve got hundreds more cops. And on the flip side of that [to neighbourhood policing] we are going to concentrate doggedly, and I mean doggedly, on those who present most harm in our society.

“You’ve got people out there who prey on the vulnerable, they prey on the elderly. You’ve got people who are involved in serious and organised crime – they prey on children in terms of county lines, they prey on societies and they harm, they destroy, they damage people’s lives – do you know what? That’s not on.

“Those who commit most harm in our society, well they need to be a little worried to be quite honest, because we’re not going to stop, we’re not just going to wait to receive crime, we’re going to identify those that commit the harm, we will identify those that commit crime, and we’re coming to get them. We will be coming through a door near you soon.

“You can expect to get a significant policing response from this force. And starting my new chiefship I’m looking to really make a statement in our society.

“It will be a demonstration to the public we are not just going to take a back seat, say yes, we’re outstanding, we’ve got it on a report, we’ll go and get these people, we’ll remove these people from the streets.”

‘OUR STAFF ARE THE FINEST PEOPLE I’VE EVER WORKED WITH’: Paul Anderson

Mr Anderson is beginning to build his own team, and this week David Marshall was appointed as Deputy Chief Constable having previously served as assistant chief constable with the force. Humberside is also currently inviting applications for the post of assistant chief constable.

Asked what qualities he looks for in a senior officer, Mr Anderson cited Mr Marshall as an example and said: “I want people who are outstanding. David Marshall is an experienced police officer. He’s worked across different forces, he is a really good operational police officer and operator and he’s also a good cop, a good man and [has] a kind heart – that’s what I want.

“But I want people who are ambitious, people that just won’t say, hey, we’ve got this grade now we’re going to stand still. I want someone with absolute drive and ambition. They wouldn’t survive with me otherwise. But that’s what I want from my assistant chief constable. We’re looking for outstanding leaders, but leaders and people that listen.”

The chief constable acknowledged policing nationally has “had a hard time of late” and said it has “got to sort its act out”. He said Humberside had also had its own issues, but would be “hostile” to employees who do not uphold its values.

He added: “But let me talk to the 99.9 per cent of my staff; they are the finest people I’ve ever worked with, they do a really special job. They put themselves in harm’s way and each and every one of them walks out of the station every day, they don’t know what they are going to face, they don’t know what job they are going to go to but they are prepared to do that, seven days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

“And I’m very grateful for all of those people. I see on a daily basis the violence they’re subjected to, the behaviours they’re subjected to, and when you hear of police failings, and we do make failings, we acknowledge the failings, but when you see the tens of thousands of good pieces of work we do, I would just like to tell the public these people are your community, they by and large live in your community and the vast majority of them are great, fine people, and they just want to go out every day and keep people safe, because that’s what cops do.”