Thames Valley Police appoints new Assistant Chief Constables

Three Assistant Chief Constables have taken up new roles this week as part of the senior leadership team for Thames Valley Police.

Dennis Murray QPM joins the force from Northamptonshire Police, following his promotion to Assistant Chief Constable and will take responsibility for Crime and Criminal Justice across the force.

Assistant Chief Constable Tim De Meyer, who previously held responsibility for these portfolios will now oversee Local Policing for the Thames Valley.

Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe has moved into the role of Regional ACC of Counter Terrorism Policing South East and the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit.

ACC Dennis Murray has had more than 30 years’ policing experience since first joining Northamptonshire Police in 1991.

He received the Queen’s Policing Medal (QPM) in June last year in recognition of his exemplary career, improving diversity and developing new approaches to police use and scrutiny of powers such as stop and search.

ACC Murray initially joined Northamptonshire Police as a Special Constable, before signing up as a full-time officer the following year. Subsequently, he spent time in CID as well as local policing, where he was passionate about working in partnership with diverse communities.

During his service in Northamptonshire, ACC Murray was awarded the David Ryan Memorial Cup for his work with the Muslim communities, the Pride in Northamptonshire Award for his hard work and determination in relation to community engagement work, and the Brigadier Lomond Award for designing effective and efficient immersive training, which was recognised as good practice and received international recognition.

In 2014, ACC Murray became the chair of the Northamptonshire Black Police Association, where he continued to support officers from black and ethnic minority backgrounds.

In November 2020, he moved to British Transport Police (BTP) on a secondment as Chief Superintendent lead for Trust, Legitimacy and Community Policing.

ACC Murray said: “I am delighted to be taking up the role of Assistant Chief Constable, Crime and Criminal Justice.

“Thames Valley Police is a great police force and the commitment and enthusiasm of officers, staff and partners to deliver an outstanding service to the public is clear to see.

“I am passionate about tackling and reducing crime and working with partners and the public to deliver better outcomes for victims and for all communities.

“I am looking forward to meeting new colleagues, partners and the communities of Thames Valley to build strong relationships that can rely upon each other, tackle and reduce crime and keep people safe.

“I am also grateful for the opportunity to have worked with some amazing people at Northamptonshire Police and BTP, and I wish both organisations all the very best for the future.”

ACC Tim De Meyer began his police career with the Metropolitan Police Service in 1997. During his service for the Met, he served in detective roles at each rank, in various boroughs and specialist departments across south and west London.

ACC De Meyer joined Thames Valley Police in 2008 on promotion to Superintendent, taking up the position of LPA Commander for the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead.

In 2012, ACC De Meyer was promoted to Chief Superintendent in the Thames Valley for neighbourhood policing and partnerships before becoming Head of Professional Standards in 2014.

ACC De Meyer said: “It is an honour to lead Local Policing in our force.

“The women and men of our Local Policing Areas continue our proud tradition of response, investigative and neighbourhood policing.

“I do not underestimate the challenges but am determined that we shall strive to serve victims tirelessly, investigate crime thoroughly and pursue criminals relentlessly.

“We must endeavour to serve victims as we would wish our own families to be served.

“To begin with, I will focus in particular on domestic abuse, where we must act to protect the most vulnerable from the most dangerous behind closed doors.”

ACC Tim Metcalfe began his policing career with West Midlands Police, alternating between uniform and detective posts before transferring to Thames Valley Police in 2014.

During his career, he has performed a variety of uniform and detective roles and has led on a number of regional and national programmes relating to the development of the National Counter Terrorism Network.

He was the regional lead for firearms, Disaster Victim Identification and Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear and was the National Police Air Service liaison for the South East region.

He has previously worked as the head of Resources and Resilience in Thames Valley, Commander for Milton Keynes and Aylesbury Vale local policing areas. His most recent role has been overseeing the Joint Operations Unit for Thames Valley Police and Hampshire Constabulary.

In 2015, he became the first Chief of Staff to chair the National Police Chiefs’ Council, working closely with Chief Constable Sara Thornton to establish the new organisation.

ACC Metcalfe is currently completing a doctorate in criminology at the University of Oxford, focusing on police leadership, legitimacy and institutional theory.

ACC Metcalfe said: “It is a huge honour to have been chosen to lead the South East region and I am looking forward to getting started, meeting the fantastic people that keep our communities protected from the threat of terrorism and organised crime.

“The regional units are part of the South East forces and I am keen to further develop these strong relationships to ensure we continue to stop those who seek to do harm to our communities across the South East.”