The British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) today announced that Lucy D’Orsi has been appointed as Chief Constable of the British Transport Police (BTP).  She will take up her appointment early in the New Year.

Lucy is currently the Metropolitan Police’s Deputy Assistant Commissioner (DAC) for Specialist Operations. The current BTP Chief Constable Paul Crowther CBE is set to retire in February 2020 after 40 years of distinguished continuous service with the Force.

Lucy joined the Metropolitan Police Service in 1992. She has extensive experience working across multiple London boroughs and held the role of Commander East London. Lucy is currently Counter Terrorism Policing’s Senior National Coordinator for Protective Security and Preparedness. She works closely with UK businesses, UK military and International law enforcement agencies. Lucy is a gold public order commander and has led the policing of multiple events.

Lucy currently has London responsibilities for Royalty and Specialist Protection, Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection, Aviation Policing and Protective Security. She recently led on the Centenary celebrations for 100 years of Metropolitan Police Women and is also the National Police lead for Taser and Counter Drone UK capabilities.

Lucy says: “I am delighted and honoured to be appointed as the next Chief Constable of BTP. I am looking forward to building on the legacy that Paul is handing over and I would like to thank him for his dedication to policing. Whilst policing the Nation’s capital has given me a wealth of operational experience, I am excited to lead a force that deals with the unique nature of policing Britain’s rail, underground and tram network. Working with industry partners and government to keep passengers safe, the railway moving and protect our critical national infrastructure, particularly during these uncertain times will be very rewarding. I very much look forward to working with the exceptional officers and staff of BTP, and the Police Authority. Finally, I would like to thank my family, friends and colleagues who have supported me throughout my policing career.”

BTPA Chair, Ron Barclay-Smith, says: “We believe that Lucy will bring valuable skills and insightful leadership to BTP, at a time when there is an uncertain future for Britain’s rail landscape. With the changing nature of crime and demand on the railway following Covid-19, and the need for ever closer working between BTP and train operators, we feel that Lucy’s strong blend of experience and aptitude position her well to lead BTP.  We are delighted she has agreed to take on this role.”

Lucy will provide effective leadership to a large, dispersed workforce of over 5,000 police officers and staff across England, Scotland and Wales, as well as leading constructive partnerships with the Department for Transport, the devolved administrations and the Rail Industry across Great Britain. She will develop BTP’s Strategy and lead BTP in delivering its service economically and efficiently, whilst simultaneously enhancing its reputation further for its innovative and bold approach on the national policing stage.

Lucy was chosen following a rigorous interview and assessment process led by the BTPA, the oversight body for the BTP. The appointment was approved by the Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps MP and endorsed by Scottish Justice Minister Humza Yousaf MSP.

ENDS

For media enquiries, please contact BTPA Stakeholder Engagement and Communications Manager Pamela Christie on 07917782198 or [email protected]

The British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) has appointed Andy Cooper, former Managing Director of Cross Country Trains, as Interim Deputy Chair.

Mr Cooper, who has been a Member of BTPA since 2019, replaces Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) Chief Executive Mark Phillips who stood down from his role as Deputy Chair and a member of the Authority on 6 November 2020.

BTPA Chair Ron Barclay-Smith said: “After a seven-year tenure at BTPA we were sad to see Mark go but look forward to Andy taking up the position of Interim Deputy Chair. Prior to joining the Authority, Andy had a long career within the rail industry and brings invaluable insight into the needs and priorities of our industry partners.

“We wish Mark Phillips all the best for the future and thank him for the time and guidance he has contributed to the Authority.”

There are currently 12 members of the BTPA, who are appointed by the Secretary of State for Transport. Members are required to have knowledge of a range of views from the rail industry and rail passengers. Vacancies are publicly advertised by the Department for Transport and filled when required.

 

The British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) would like to congratulate the three BTP officers and staff who were recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours last week.

The awards are as follows:

• A QPM for Detective Chief Inspector Kate Forsyth
• An MBE for Force Resources Manager Elizabeth McWhirter
• An OBE for Detective Superintendent Gary Richardson

For more information about their achievements, please see the BTP news story.

The British Transport Police (BTP) Policing Plans for 2020/21 are now available to view on the Policing Plan section of the BTPA website.

While the objectives in these plans were developed prior to the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Plan acknowledges that operational focus will remain on the demands posed by the virus and related restrictions, ensuring the railway network remains safe and secure.

This year’s Annual Objectives:

• Protect the railway and prepare for the impact of terrorist attacks
• Protect rail passengers and staff by tackling serious violent crime and robbery
• Partnership working at key locations where there is a high risk associated with vulnerable people or volume crime
• Reduce disruption at trespass locations and continue interventions with those in crisis on the railway
• Adopt a problem solving approach to policing anti-social behaviour and violence associated with football matches
• Protect, support and safeguard vulnerable people and those at risk of harm on the railway

BTPA Chair, Ron Barclay-Smith, said: “We were prepared to publish the 2020/21 Policing Plans in April 2020 but we delayed this due to the swift onset of the Coronavirus crisis.

“Within the space of a few weeks our officers and staff were forced to adapt their ways of working to face the challenges posed by lockdown, new rules relating to the use of the railway and stations, as well as criminality and safeguarding issues that continued even when the majority of railway users were avoiding public places.

“To release our plans for the year in April would have been inappropriate, and the Authority agreed to delay publication and instead put our full support behind the operational decision-making needed by the Force in the face of the crisis.”

Update: 20 August 2020

On June 5 2020, the BTP invited the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to independently review the available evidence in the Victoria Station investigation involving Belly Mujinga.

The BTP said: “In recognition of the wider public interest in the circumstances of this case, whilst we made the decision not to charge, we have now invited independent review by the CPS of the available evidence, and whether there are any further lines of enquiry in relation to BTP’s position on the prospect of meeting the general principle of a successful prosecution.”

The CPS have now concluded their review and you can read their statement on the CPS website.

Update: 26 June 2020

Following the high level of public interest in the Belly Mujinga case, BTP has released a further statement on the investigation into the incident at Victoria Station, which you can see on the BTP website.

Due to the high volume of emails received by BTPA, it will not be possible to respond individually to all but the above statement answers many of the questions in the emails we received.

The BTPA received a significant number of emails requesting the release to the public of the CCTV footage of the alleged spitting incident at Victoria Station. Whilst it is always our preference to provide a personal response to correspondence the BTPA does not have the resources to respond to each of these requests on an individual basis. Therefore, this statement forms our response to the FOI request for the CCTV footage of the incident.

The BTPA is the oversight body of the BTP and as such has no operational or investigatory role. Therefore, the BTPA does not hold the CCTV footage requested.
The footage is held by BTP and their position in respect of the request to release the CCTV is included in their statement.

If you are dissatisfied with the way that either the BTPA or BTP have responded to this FOI request you may make a complaint to the Office of the Information Commissioner https://ico.org.uk/