The British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) is pleased to announce that Robin Smith has been appointed to the vacant Assistant Chief Constable (ACC) role at the British Transport Police (BTP)Robin will be joining the Force from Sussex Constabulary, where he was temporary Deputy Chief Constable, on 19 September.

He has more than 30 years’ policing experiencing, including ACC at Sussex Police, where his roles included responsibility for the Local Policing and Crime portfolio, Head of Operations for Surrey and Sussex and Head of the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit.

Robin is also a former Divisional Commander at Gatwick Airport and is a Strategic Firearms Commander and Gold Public Order Commander.

He had previously been the NPCC lead for Local Policing and Crimestoppers and is a director and trustee for The Gurney Fund for Police Orphans.

Esther McVey, Chair of the British Transport Police Authority, said: “I am delighted to announce Robin’s appointment to the Force. He brings with him a wide range of relevant experience gained in a territorial police force and I look forward to the fresh perspective he will bring.”

Robin said: “I feel very privileged and excited about my new role. BTP has an enviable reputation and I look forward to working closely with the executive team, officers, staff, partners, stakeholders and the BTPA to deliver the very best service to the public.”

British Transport Police Chief Constable Paul Crowther said: “I am very much looking forward to working alongside Robin, who brings with him a wealth of expertise and knowledge from his time with Sussex. I know he will be a valuable addition to the Force as we move forward, facing new challenges and working to keep the travelling public safe.”

The Department for Transport has appointed Ray O’Toole as interim BTPA member for a 12 month period.

Ray officially joined the Authority on 2 November and will play a vital role in overseeing the work of the British Transport Police.

Ray joins with solid experience in this role having previously served as a member of the Authority from 2005 – 2009.

Andrew Figgures Chief Executive of BTPA said:

“Ray is a welcome addition to our organisation and to our body of members. His knowledge and passion for the rail industry will be invaluable as we guide the work of the nation’s railways police.”

Currently the Chief Executive of Essential Fleet Services, Ray was also Chief Operating Officer for National Express with responsibility for all fleet performance across the global organisation. Ray is a qualified mechanical engineer, who formerly served as Director of Engineering for First Group.

Esther McVey has been appointed as the new Chair of the British Transport Police Authority (BTPA), for a four year term.

The new Chair will play a vital role in setting the strategic direction of the BTPA to ensure that the British Transport Police (BTP) – which polices Britain’s rail network – is an efficient and effective force that provides excellent service, maintains the security of the transport network, and delivers value for money for the taxpayer.

Esther, who officially takes up her post today, got a taste of her new role when she briefly visited BTP’s offices with the Secretary of State for Transport Patrick McLoughlin yesterday. Esther and Patrick met the Chief Constable of BTP Paul Crowther and discussed transport safety as well as touring BTP’s CCTV facilities.

As part of her role, Esther McVey will work with the BTP to oversee transport security and to tackle the issue of sexual violence on the rail network.

The appointment was made by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin following an independent selection process.

Patrick McLoughlin said:

“The security of the travelling public has never been more important and Esther McVey will bring considerable skills to this vital task. Although Britain has one of the safest railways in Europe we face increasing risks that mean there can be no room for complacency. The British Transport Police do a fantastic job keeping passengers safe and secure and I am confident that under Esther’s guidance that record can continue.”

Responding to the announcement Andrew Figgures Chief Executive of the Authority said:

“I congratulate Esther on her success in being appointed Chair of the BTPA.

“She will provide strong leadership to the Authority in governing BTP so that it delivers value for money by achieving its strategic goals of reducing disruption and crime whilst increasing passenger confidence within a tight budget.”

New Chair of BTPA Esther McVey added:

“With more and more people using the railways, the role of the British Transport Police in allowing people to travel safely is more important than ever.  I am delighted to have been appointed Chair of the Police Authority and am honoured to be taking up this role. I look forward to playing my part in building on the excellent work the British Transport Police does.”

Chief Constable Paul Crowther said:

 “I welcome Esther as the new Chair of the BTPA. She joins us at an exciting and challenging time as the Force delivers a significant change programme to enable us to achieve our strategic objectives of reducing crime and disruption and increasing confidence levels.

“I met Esther yesterday when she visited our CCTV hub with the Secretary of State for Transport and I look forward to working with her as we build on our specialist approach to meet the current and future challenges of policing the rail network.”

British Transport Police Authority’s (BTPA) new Chair, Esther McVey, praised BTP’s innovative working following visits to the British Transport Police’s Specialist Operations Support Unit, Central London Police Station (CLPS) and Euston station hub team last week.

Esther met Superintendent John Conaghan from the Counter Terrorism Support Unit (CTSU) at Blundell Street to find out more about how BTP are at the forefront of preventing terrorist attacks on the rail network and the work that goes on behind the scenes. She also had the chance to learn about the Football Unit and how the force are focusing on tackling football-related anti-social behaviour on board trains and at stations.

Divisional Commander Chief Superintendent Martin Fry welcomed Esther to CLPS and gave an overview of current operations and priorities across B Division before introducing her to the Dip Squad and Sexual Offences teams.

 

BTPA Chair Esther McVey said:

“It was great to get a chance to see first-hand the wide range of strategic and operational issues BTP has to deal with each day and the different tactics and resources it can deploy, alongside its rail industry partners, to address them.

“I believe it’s important that as Chair I appreciate the reality of delivering policing on the railway and to help me with that I look forward to spending an evening shift with the Force shortly and being part of a team deployed to a football policing operation.”

Chief Superintendent Fry said:

“It was great to meet BTPA’s new Chair and to get the opportunity to discuss the range of work we do here on division and challenges that we face for the New Year. Hopefully the tour was insightful and revealed more about our capabilities and how we use these as a specialist force.”

Esther concluded her visit by heading over to meet Chief Superintendent Paul Brogden, who is working for Network Rail and leads on tackling disruption, before meeting the hub team at Euston station.

Talks with the UK’s rail industry began this week with the British Transport Police Authority and BTP embarking on nationwide consultation to determine the priorities for policing Great Britain’s trains and stations next year.

Events are taking place across the country with invited senior representatives from train and freight operating companies, Scottish government, Rail Delivery Group and Transport Focus discussing what BTP will need to focus on next year in order to assist in the safe and smooth running of the country’s rail network.

So far talks, which kicked off in Birmingham on Monday, have included identifying opportunities to improve how BTP supports staff and focusing on activities that increase confidence as well as maintaining a focus on increasing the identification of the perpetrators of crime.

Rail industry colleagues who have attended events so far, including Andy Cooper MD of CrossCountry and Virgin Trains Executive Director Phil Bearpark, have expressed a real appetite to work alongside BTP as delivery partners to assist in the intelligent deployment of police and industry resources and the sharing of information to direct those deployments.

To ensure a broad range of views are taken on board this year’s consultation coincides with BTP’s passenger consultation, which is seeing local police teams out and about asking commuters and rail staff ‘what matters to you?’ when it comes to policing. Feedback from both sets of consultation will be used to set the priorities for rail policing in 2016/17.

Consultation with the UK’s rail industry and Scottish & Welsh representatives closes on 13 November and will be followed up by a draft of policing priorities which the rail industry will comment on in the New Year. BTP’s passenger consultation ends 23 November.

You can keep updated on the progress on the plans for policing Great Britain’s railways 2016/17 or if you work in the rail industry and are interested in attending an event please get in touch.

View the latest policing plans.