Mr Carden will address public scrutiny just weeks into his new role
Incoming Merseyside Police Chief Constable Rob Carden and PCC Emily Spurrell (PCC)
Merseyside’s new top cop is to address the public for the first time as the force faces scrutiny over serious organised crime. Rob Carden was confirmed as the region’s new Chief Constable in May and will succeed outgoing chief Serena Kennedy on September 1.
Mr Carden first joined Merseyside Police in 1992 and, during his career spent more than 20 years serving the region’s communities before moving to Cumbria Constabulary on promotion as Deputy Chief Constable and subsequently being appointed Chief Constable. He was announced as the preferred choice by Emily Spurrell, Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner, in May.
He will now face questions from the public for the first time as officers address Mrs Spurrell during a scrutiny meeting at Mann Island in Liverpool city centre. This will be the first time Mr Carden sets out how he plans to lead Merseyside Police.
One of the key ways the Police Commissioner undertakes this crucial role is through quarterly public scrutiny meetings, which include questions submitted by the public which she then puts to the Chief Constable and his chief officer team.
While the focus for the next Scrutiny Meeting will be Merseyside Police’s work around serious violence, road safety and serious organised crime, the commissioner is inviting questions on any policing or community safety issue with the aim of further increasing the openness and transparency around policing in our region.
Mrs Spurrell said: “One of my top priorities as commissioner is to listen to what our residents have to say and to be their voice on policing and community safety issues.
“Your questions and opinions matter to me and can help to make Merseyside a safer place for everyone.
“It’s vitally important the public trust the police and can see that money and resources are being used wisely to deliver the best possible service to keep our communities safe.
“I hope by providing this opportunity it will help to reassure people that both myself and the Chief Constable are committed to being as open and transparent about the police’s work as possible.”
The meeting will provide Chief Officers with the opportunity to give the commissioner a detailed account of the force’s progress and how they are working to make our communities safer.
Before being appointed to the top job, Chief Constable Carden led the largest security operation hosted in Merseyside at the time, the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting and he was Gold Command for the Grand National on four occasions.
He has also been a Counter Terrorism Commander and he was the strategic firearms commander for the high-level policing operation that followed the terrorist incident at the Women’s Hospital in Liverpool.
Public questions must be submitted to the Police and Crime Commissioner’s office by August 29, ahead of the meeting taking place on September 24.