Hertfordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner to swap law and order for new life in academia

Hertfordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Lloyd is to swap law and order for a new life in academia.

He has announced he will not contest the next election in May after 12 years and three terms overseeing Hertfordshire Constabulary.

Mr Lloyd said: “I always think the art of leadership is knowing when to say goodbye, instead of holding on and holding on.

“I have had three good terms – probably the longest-serving person in police governance.”

Before standing for the newly created role of PCC in 2012, Mr Lloyd had also served as chair of the county’s police authority.

He said the move away from police authorities towards higher profile PCCs has made Hertfordshire residents ponder the kind of policing they want to have.

And he said he believed it has put a greater focus on victims – rather than the perpetrators of crime.

“I think that because of PCCs, I think victims have very much moved to the centre – instead of being on the edge,” he said.

“Most of the criminal justice system is about trying to find out what happened – and then justice. PCCs are more biased towards the victims and put them at the centre.

“I am really pleased we have the Beacon Victim Service in Hertfordshire – which is one of the leading victim centres in the country.”

Mr Lloyd pointed to the Beacon service as one of the things he was most proud of – along with a commitment to neighbourhood policing and a record number of police officers.

“There was a move from policing of districts and boroughs – and I very much set my face against that,” he said.

“That’s something I think has worked well. And I think people understand that better.”

During his time in office, Mr Lloyd said he had also seen a fall in crime – pointing to a 75% drop in violence on the streets and the number of burglaries falling by half.

However, he also acknowledged an increase in reported fraud and in violence against women and girls.

He said, moving forward, the biggest challenge for the next PCC would be making sure that policing remains as efficient and effective as possible.

“Local government finance is in a relatively tight place at the moment,” he said.

“And if one part is having difficulties that tends to hit all the other parts of local government.

“They will also still need to make sure we are getting our policing right.”

He particularly pointed to areas such as the proportionality of stop and search and policing fairly.

He also hoped the next PCC would maintain a commitment to the “prevention first” approach.

He said: “With all the extra police officers they will want to keep an eye on conviction rates and drive them up further than they are at the moment.”

Having previously served as a district and county councillor, Mr Lloyd said he had been involved in local government for 30 years – and involved in the Conservative Party since the age of 11 – putting leaflets through doors as a schoolboy during the 1974 General Election campaign.

During his time as PCC, he has been a member of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, serving as board member and chairman.

He is currently a member of the National Criminal Justice Board and is a former chair of the Police Reform and Transformation Board.

When he steps down as Hertfordshire’s PCC in May, Mr Lloyd plans to take up a post as a senior research fellow at Birmingham University.

At the university, he said he planned to look at some of the problems he has found over the last few years as PCC – with an interest in local government leadership and criminology.

He was also planning a move away from Hertfordshire and more time for hobbies including choral singing and photography.