The Boston police chief who halved crime and the fear of crime in his home force has been appointed as the new head of the Police Standards Unit.
Paul Evans, 54, will be responsible for driving forward the Police Standards Unit’s work programme to help deliver on the Government’s police reform agenda and raise standards in policing across England and Wales.
His pioneering approach to neighbourhood policing in Boston Police Department – one of the largest in the US – has helped cut violent crime by 34 per cent, homicides by 68 per cent and burglary by 40 per cent since 1995.
Home Secretary, David Blunkett, said:
"I am very pleased to announce Paul Evans’ appointment as head of the Police Standards Unit. His track record in reducing crime in Boston is extremely impressive and he is ideally placed to lead the unit’s work in driving up performance standards in the police service. He also has a strong background in reform and in working closely with very diverse communities. His ability to mobilise the strength of the community and local partners, in the task of reducing crime, has also been very impressive and mirrors the civil renewal agenda being promoted by Ministers in the Home Office.
"His experience and knowledge of global improvements in policing methods will be valuable in the role of creating a local commitment to year-on-year self-improvement and much greater consistency of delivery across the country.
"It is the improvement at local level, by spreading best practice and using Inspectorate findings, to encourage both greater aspiration and determination to drive up standards, which is at the heart of the Standards Unit’s work. This is not the Home Office running local forces, but ensuring that the standards of the best are spread to the rest of the country.”
Mr Evans said:
"I am delighted to be appointed Director of the Police Standards Unit and to have this exciting and challenging opportunity. I want to continue and step up the work of the Unit to establish effective partnerships with police forces across England and Wales. I will, of course, have a great deal to learn but also, I hope, real experience to bring."
Notes to Editors:
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Paul Evans, 54, is married with one child. He joined the Boston Police Department in 1970 as a patrol officer and worked his way up to police commissioner, a post he has held from 1994 to the present.
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From 1967 to 1969 Mr Evans served in the US Marine Corps and was assigned to an artillery battery during the Vietnam War.
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Mr Evans was educated at Boston State College and was awarded a degree in Political Science and Law Enforcement in 1974. He became a Juris Doctor (Cum Laude) from Suffolk University Law School Boston in 1978.
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The appointment follows an open competition conducted for the Home Office by recruitment consultants under the guidance of the Civil Service Commission. Mr Evans is expected to take up his post in November.
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The Police Standards Unit exists to deliver the Government’s commitment to raise standards and improve operational performance in the police and in crime reduction generally and to maintain and enhance public satisfaction with policing in their area. Its core objective is to identify and disseminate best practice in the prevention and detection of crime in all forces, in order to reduce crime and disorder as well as the fear of crime.
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