Senior leaders
Sussex Police have a command team of both police officers and police staff who work together to ensure the effective and efficient running of the force.
Chief Officers
Jo became the force’s ninth Chief Constable in July 2020 and is the first female Chief Constable in the history of Sussex Police.
On her appointment, Jo set out three clear priorities for Sussex Police, these are to Protect Communities, Catch Criminals, and Deliver an Outstanding Service.
These priorities are ably delivered by a professional, committed and inclusive workforce who take great pride in keeping the public safe.
In a policing career of over 30 years, Jo has undertaken a wide variety of roles across 3 forces. These have predominantly been operational, both in uniform and within Public Protection commands and CID. She has been a firearms, public order and Critical Incident Commander for about 20 years up until she became the Chief.
Jo started her policing career in Norfolk in 1993, serving up to the rank of Chief Superintendent. She then transferred on promotion to Kent as Assistant Chief Constable in 2014 heading up both the Operations Command and Local Policing. Jo joined Sussex Police in late 2018 as Deputy Chief Constable.
Throughout her career she has been committed to taking a preventative and proactive approach to policing – always working closely with partners and keeping victims and the community at the centre of her leadership. Her strong belief is that there are very few circumstances where policing alone is the answer.
Jo is also the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for Roads Policing. She has always believed that the effective policing of our roads will reduce crime and save lives. She provides local, regional and national leadership and direction to make our roads safer, working tirelessly to prevent death and casualties. Jo also represents Chief Constables as the Police Trustee on the Road Safety Trust.
Jo is the proud patron of Sussex Search and Rescue and Sussex Police Charitable Trust. She also actively supports other charities such as the Beachy Head Chaplains and has previously sat on strategic Boards for both The Princes Trust and Norfolk Community Foundation. She was also previously a Trustee for Embrace (CVOC).
Jo is a keen advocate for fitness, regularly signing up for events including marathons and long bike rides to fundraise for good causes. She also volunteers at ground level for a number of local charities.
Jo is happily married and lives with her husband, and much-loved exuberant rescue dog, Rocky.
On her appointment, Jo set out three clear priorities for Sussex Police, these are to Protect Communities, Catch Criminals, and Deliver an Outstanding Service.
These priorities are ably delivered by a professional, committed and inclusive workforce who take great pride in keeping the public safe.
In a policing career of over 30 years, Jo has undertaken a wide variety of roles across 3 forces. These have predominantly been operational, both in uniform and within Public Protection commands and CID. She has been a firearms, public order and Critical Incident Commander for about 20 years up until she became the Chief.
Jo started her policing career in Norfolk in 1993, serving up to the rank of Chief Superintendent. She then transferred on promotion to Kent as Assistant Chief Constable in 2014 heading up both the Operations Command and Local Policing. Jo joined Sussex Police in late 2018 as Deputy Chief Constable.
Throughout her career she has been committed to taking a preventative and proactive approach to policing – always working closely with partners and keeping victims and the community at the centre of her leadership. Her strong belief is that there are very few circumstances where policing alone is the answer.
Jo is also the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for Roads Policing. She has always believed that the effective policing of our roads will reduce crime and save lives. She provides local, regional and national leadership and direction to make our roads safer, working tirelessly to prevent death and casualties. Jo also represents Chief Constables as the Police Trustee on the Road Safety Trust.
Jo is the proud patron of Sussex Search and Rescue and Sussex Police Charitable Trust. She also actively supports other charities such as the Beachy Head Chaplains and has previously sat on strategic Boards for both The Princes Trust and Norfolk Community Foundation. She was also previously a Trustee for Embrace (CVOC).
Jo is a keen advocate for fitness, regularly signing up for events including marathons and long bike rides to fundraise for good causes. She also volunteers at ground level for a number of local charities.
Jo is happily married and lives with her husband, and much-loved exuberant rescue dog, Rocky.
Dave started his career in Fife Constabulary in 1996 prior transferring to Police Scotland during police reform in 2013. Throughout his career he has worked in mainly detective roles at every rank covering Major Crime, Organised Crime, Public Protection and Local Crime.
In 2020 having successfully completed the Strategic Command Course he moved to the Metropolitan Police (MPS) as Commander for Specialist Crime. As Commander in the MPS he led on homicide, organised crime, gangs and gun crime.
In July 2022 Dave joined Sussex Police as Deputy Chief Constable, and in January 2024 he became the National Strategic Intel Lead for the NPCC National Intelligence Portfolio. As of April 2026, Dave is seconded to the national Police Reform team.
Paul is the Temp. Deputy Chief Constable of Sussex, having joined Sussex Police in January 2024 as Assistant Chief Constable.
Prior to joining the team at Sussex Police, some of his more recent roles include leading the Directorate of Professional Standards at the Metropolitan Police Service and the Head of Digital Policing at Merseyside Police where he was able to put his interests in technology to good use. He is an accredited public order, firearms and CBRN commander.
If you spot Paul out and about with one of our operational teams, please feel free to chat with him about your views on policing (or alternatively his interests in aviation, Lego or dogs!).
Peter joined Surrey Police from the Metropolitan Police in January 2024 and is responsible for the newly established Criminal Justice and Transformation Assistant Chief Constable Role across both Surrey Police and Sussex Police.
Peter joined the Met in 2015 and was posted to Camden, where he worked in uniform operations and where he first fell completely in love with the job.
Steve is the Assistant Chief Constable for Operations Command with the responsibility for Firearms, Roads Policing including Serious and Forensic Investigation, Duties and Planning, Public Order, Gatwick Airport and Emergency Planning across both Surrey and Sussex.
Steve has spent his entire service in Sussex and has previously been Head of PSD and prior to that Head of Public Protection. The time Steve spent in Public Protection saw him lead the vulnerability response during the Covid pandemic, the introduction of Op Pledge, creation of the Complex Domestic and Stalking Unit and how Sussex Police use video technology to investigate crime.
Steve is also a Specialist Strategic Firearms Commander, CBRN Gold and MAGIC.
Rosie is the Assistant Chief Constable for Local Policing with responsibility for Response, CID and Neighbourhood Policing Teams across the county, as well as the Force Contact and Control Department.
Rosie came to England from Northern Ireland to study and then joined Sussex Police in 2000 as a PC on Uckfield Response team. She has worked across a wide range of operational and leadership roles and her career to date has included postings across the Sussex and has also seen her develop and lead a combined Council and Police Community Safety team. She has led major service transformation programmes to improve public contact, call handling and control room performance, which have delivered significant improvements in operational performance and service to the public. Rosie is an accredited Strategic Firearms Commander, Gold Public Order Commander and has spent several years as a Force Hostage and Crisis Negotiator.
Rosie is passionate about partnership working and community engagement, with a strong focus on building trust and confidence while ensuring policing remains focused on delivering its core responsibilities to a high standard. She is committed to improving outcomes for the public and supporting officers and staff to perform at their best.
Based in a small village in East Sussex, Rosie enjoys spending her spare time at the gym, walking her dog Winnie, motorbike riding and holidays skiing.
Biography to follow.
Peter has an extensive history of solving complex financial, operational, and strategic issues across both the public and private sectors and joins us from the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), where he directed and oversaw financial strategy and planning for the Department’s Covid-19 response. This included the Vaccine Task Force, Vaccine deployment programme and antiviral medicines, amongst other health protection services.
Prior to this role within the DHSC, Peter spent many years within the Ministry of Defence, most recently delivering international commercial programmes where he was responsible for finance and resources including procurement, buildings and estate, IT, human resources, and health and safety. Peter's history in the Defence sector has seen him work alongside the UK and US military in a variety of headquarters, international, and operational areas.
Spare time is usually spent on a combination of sports, cooking/eating, and travelling somewhere new whenever possible.
Adrian is responsible for all People Services across Surrey Police and Sussex Police – this includes Human Resources, Learning & Development and Occupational Health.
He has worked for the police service since 1996, mainly in roles within Sussex Police, which have included Divisional HR Manager roles as well as Head of HR Services and the Lead for Occupational Health and Wellbeing across both Surrey and Sussex.
In addition, Adrian is the NPCC Lead for the Job Related Fitness Test, Vice Chair of the CIPD Police Forum and a member of the Police Clinical Governance Group.
Adrian is a Chartered Member of the CIPD and holds a BSc(Hons) degree from Manchester University.
Outside work, Adrian is a keen tennis player, playing regularly and acting as a Team Captain for his local club. He is also a Governor of Warden Park Primary Academy in Haywards Heath. He also enjoys walking, cycling, gardening and travelling.
Brighton & Hove
Adam joined Sussex Police in 2001 and spent much of his service policing East Sussex Division in both uniform and detective roles. He has also served in the Force Control Room and in Public Protection, as well as various transformation roles.
In 2015 Adam was seconded to the Home Office to work on a national performance review prior to spending two years away from policing working for a global professional services firm. He also served for a year with the New Zealand Police in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake.
Prior to assuming the role of Brighton & Hove Divisional Commander Adam led the Enabling Services Change Programme as Programme Director, delivering new technologies such as Robotics Process Automation to create efficiencies and free up human workers’ time.
Adam is the Force Race Equality Champion and Force lead for Op Cavell, our response to violence against NHS workers. Adam is also a Strategic Firearms and MAGIC Commander and PRINCE2 Programme Manager, and has a degree in Criminology from the University of Portsmouth. He is married with four children and enjoys supporting his local cricket clubs with children’s coaching.
Kris joined Sussex Police in 2003 and started his policing career as a Response officer on Arun and Chichester Districts, and over the years served in a number of roles on West Sussex Division before becoming a District Commander. In more recent years, Kris has been in detective roles within CID and Public Protection, and is currently Detective Superintendent for Brighton and Hove Division having responsibility for CID, CIT, Coroner’s Officers and the Missing Persons Team.
Alongside his role, Kris has a number of other interests and skills including being the force thematic lead for Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime, and is a Tactical Firearms Commander and Post Incident Manager.
Kris lives in West Sussex with his wife and son, and with an enjoyment of outdoor pursuits including trail running and surfing likes being so close to the sea and hilly countryside including the South Downs.
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East Sussex
Karrie has moved from Public Protection, having overseen and delivered the Public Protection review programme Phase One (the new Bluestone and Iris teams), Op Soteria (the program responding to the national improvement to Rape investigations) and Violence Against Women and Girls portfolio. Previously Karrie has worked in Ops Command, responsible for the Specialist Enforcement Unit, Serious Collisions Unit and Forensic Collisions, as well as being a staff officer, and before that undertaking roles on West Division and Public Protection.
Biography to follow.
With over two decades of service in Sussex Police, I’ve built a career rooted in proactive policing, complex investigations, and community engagement. Starting in Brighton and Hastings, I progressed through response, operations, and CID, specialising in burglary, robbery, and drug-related crime. My passion for investigations led me to Major Crime and later to leading serious and complex cases within CID.
Promoted to Detective Sergeant in 2018, I’ve held leadership roles across neighbourhood policing and CID, culminating in my appointment as District Commander for Hastings & Rother in 2022. I currently serve as Head of Crime for East Sussex, temporarily promoted, and lead strategic initiatives from Lewes HQ focused on engagement and early release schemes.
I’m proud to champion equality and equity across the service. As Chair of the Sussex Race Equality Network since 2019, I’ve worked closely with stakeholders to improve recruitment, retention, and progression, ensuring our workforce reflects the communities we serve.
I am an Accredited Force Gold Commander, Critical Incident Manager, Tactical Firearms Commander, and Deputy Force Lead for Drugs Harm.
Kara began her policing career as a Police Cadet before becoming a Police Community Support Officer and later joining as a constable in January 2008. She spent her early years on the response team in Crowborough and Uckfield within the Wealden District, where she served for six years before being promoted to Sergeant in 2014.
As a Sergeant on the neighbourhood policing team, Kara continued to serve the Wealden District, leading a wide range of community and partnership initiatives. Her work in problem-solving policing earned her recognition as a finalist in the Tilley Problem Solving Awards.
Kara was promoted to Inspector in 2020 and remained within neighbourhood policing, taking on a new role in Battle in the Rother District, where she also developed specialist expertise in alcohol licensing.
In 2023, Kara became the District Commander for Hastings and Rother. She later undertook an 18-month secondment as a Chief Inspector within the Firearms and Licensing Department, working jointly across Surrey Police and Sussex Police and leading several significant change programmes.
In 2025, Kara returned to her neighbourhood policing roots in East Sussex, becoming the District Commander for Eastbourne, Lewes and Wealden. Policing has always been Kara’s chosen career, and she remains deeply committed to long-term, partnership-led approaches to improving community safety.
Biography to follow.
West Sussex
Stuart started his career as a Police Constable on West Sussex division thirty years ago, and is now the Divisional Commander. He is extremely proud to be leading amazing teams and staff across West Sussex to make a real difference to residents, communities and visitors. He has worked on all the divisions across the force, in roles including community policing, response, investigations, public protection and as a Senior Investigating Officer on the Major Crime team - investigating homicides, crimes in action and complex investigations.
He is a Strategic Firearms Commander, mentor and the thematic lead for Response Policing across the Force. He has a master’s degree in Applied Criminology and Police leadership from Cambridge University.
Andy joined Sussex Police in 2008, with the majority of his career being within response, custody and other local policing roles. This has included being the district commander for the Neighbourhood Policing Team on Brighton & Hove Division.
Prior to joining West Sussex Division, Andy was seconded to the Office of the Sussex PCC, where he led and delivered the Immediate Justice programme, formulated from the national Anti-social Behaviour (ASB) action plan.
As the Force lead for ASB, Andy is extremely passionate about keeping our communities safe, ensuring victims are put first and providing the best level of service possible. Always seeking to improve and implement good practice, Andy also chairs the Sussex ASB Working Group to develop and embed an effective partnership response to ASB.
Alongside his current role, Andy is an accredited Force Gold, and Tactical Firearms Commander.
James joined Sussex Police in 2004 and has dedicated his career to protecting communities. As a Police Constable and Sergeant, he spent his early years in Brighton in a variety of uniformed roles, including Response, Investigations, Neighbourhood Policing and Community Safety. This diverse experience provided him with a solid foundation in all aspects of police work.
After becoming an Inspector, James spent several years as a Critical Incident Inspector before becoming a Firearms Commander. He later transitioned to lead the Children and Young Persons Team, focusing on supporting and diverting children away from the Criminal Justice system.
In November 2023, James moved to West Sussex Division as a Chief Inspector, and in April 2024, he became the District Commander for Adur, Worthing and Horsham. In this role, he is responsible for leading Response Policing, who attend emergency and priority incidents across the District. In addition, he oversees the Neighbourhood Policing Teams, which work closely with local partners to tackle the more entrenched issues within the community.
Alongside his current role James is an accredited Force Critical Incident Manager, the Business Crime Lead for West Sussex and maintains an active role as a Force Tactical Firearms Commander.
Biography to follow.
Sarah has worked for Sussex Police for 21 years. Initially she joined Sussex Police as a civilian member of staff working as an administrator within the Central Ticket and Summons Unit before joining as a Police Constable in 2006.
Throughout her career as a Police officer she has worked at various ranks and roles across West Sussex including Response, Neighbourhood Policing and Strategic Support. Sarah has previously worked as a Family Liaison officer and in her most recent rank of Chief Inspector is an accredited Critical Incident Manager.
As a mum, Sarah is passionate within her role of Parenting Champion for the force, identifying new and innovative ways to support parents across the force in their parenting journey and ensuring they can be both successful in their role as a parent, but also within their career.
Col joined Sussex police in 2003 and began his career as a police constable on the Divisional Response Team on Horsham District, before being promoted to Sergeant in 2007 where he remained passionate and committed to Response Policing until 2015. From here he moved to the Crawley District and became a Custody Sergeant before then taking the National Investigators Exam and becoming a Detective Sergeant in 2017. Col progressed through the ranks at Crawley CID, becoming first the Detective Inspector and then Detective Chief Inspector before recently moving to T/Detective Superintendent for Chichester and Arun District.
This career progression has allowed him to oversee a variety of teams including Response, Custody, Criminal Investigation Departments, Community Investigation Teams (CIT) and the Missing Person Team (MPT.) He now has responsibility for Chichester and Arun District, and is dedicated to ensuring that our communities receive outstanding service and criminals are caught and brought to justice.
Col is the lead in Sussex Police for Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking and is really passionate about raising public awareness about this particular crime, working with partners to safeguard victims. He is also the force lead for Exposure and Voyeurism offences, working closely with other senior colleagues to bring an end to Violence against Women and Girls.
Outside of work, Col is dedicated to his family and as an ex-professional football player (in his younger days!) enjoys helping coach his son’s local football team and spending time at the playground with his young daughter.
Biography to follow.
Ali joined Sussex Police in 2005. Her experience spans across all three West Sussex hubs; Chichester, Worthing, and Crawley, encompassing roles in Response, Neighbourhood Policing Teams (NPT), Intelligence, Public Order and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). This breadth of experience has provided her with a comprehensive understanding of policing and the criminal justice process.
Currently, as a Detective, Ali demonstrates a commitment to the investigation of serious and complex cases. Notably, she exhibits a keen interest in the professional development of her team members, imbedding a culture of growth and advancement.
In her capacity as Crime Manager for Chichester and Arun, Ali holds responsibility for the management of the Criminal Investigation Department, the Response Investigation Team, and the Community Investigation Team, showing her passion for pushing criminal cases to court to achieve positive outcomes for victims. More recently Ali has taken on the Force Portfolio for Burglaries with the ambition to support the Force Priorities of catching criminals, protecting communities and delivering an outstanding service in this area.
Beyond her professional commitments, Ali maintains a balanced lifestyle, expressing a passion for travel and outdoor pursuits, including walking her dog.
Imran currently serves as the District Superintendent for Crawley and Mid-Sussex, with overall responsibility for local policing in the area.
He began his policing career with the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) in 2004 as a response officer in Walthamstow. In 2008, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and transferred to Haringey, where he served in various roles over the next 11 years. These included positions in response policing, custody, public order, and as Staff Officer to the Basic Command Unit (BCU) Commander.
In 2019, Imran was promoted to Inspector and assumed responsibility for the Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) in Haringey. Driven by a strong commitment to community policing and partnership-led problem solving, he progressed to Chief Inspector and was posted to Croydon. There, he oversaw NPT operations, schools and youth engagement, and town centre policing. This role enabled him to work closely with local partners and communities to address issues of significant local concern.
In 2024, Imran transitioned from the MPS to Sussex Police following his promotion to Superintendent. He now leads policing operations in Crawley and Mid-Sussex.
In addition to his operational responsibilities, Imran is an accredited Counter Terrorism Security Coordinator, Force Gold Commander, Post-Incident Manager, and Multi-Agency Gold Commander.
Prior to joining Sussex Police in 2002, Steve was a Special Constable in Hampshire for two years. He began his Sussex career as a PC in Bognor Regis on Response, where he later became a Tutor. In 2004, his passion for developing others saw him become a full-time Tutor on a bespoke Tutor Unit. And in 2006, the Tutor Unit expanded and became the Professional Development Unit, which Steve helped set up for the Force.
In 2007, Steve spent a year leading the Professional Development Unit on West as an Acting Police Sergeant, until March 2008 when he left on promotion to Littlehampton Response. In August 2009, he joined Lancing Neighbourhood Policing team, where he remained until 2016. His next role saw him become the Licensing lead for West Sussex Division, which he left on promotion to Inspector in 2017.
His first Inspector post was at Crawley on Response, and in 2018, Steve returned to Arun as the Neighbourhood Policing Inspector. In 2020, he remained on the department but moved north to Crawley. In September 2024, Steve became an Acting Chief Inspector and was subsequently posted to the role of District Commander for both Crawley and Mid Sussex.
Alongside his role, Steve has other interests and skills including being the race engagement lead for West Sussex and the local lead for the first Clear, Hold, Build pilot within Sussex (at Crawley).
Outside of the police service, Steve is a father to his 11yr old daughter and owns a friendly, miniature Schnauzer. He holds a First-Degree Black belt in Karate and enjoys going to the gym in his spare time.
Pauline has been a Sussex Police officer for 21 years. During this time she has worked in a variety of roles within the police, including Response, Prevent and Prevention. Pauline became a detective and joined Public Protection before moving to Criminal Investigations. Pauline has worked in strategic and performance positions.
Pauline is Mum to two teenage boys and when she’s not juggling work and freezing on the sidelines at football, she is walking her dog. Pauline enjoys roaming around the South Downs, training for and running ultra-marathons and is dedicated to using this as a way to raise money for and awareness of causes which are dear to her.