Criminals are not welcome in Dorset.

That is the message from the new Chief Constable Scott Chilton who was formerly the county’s Deputy Chief Constable.

He said: “I want to make Dorset as hostile a place as possible for any offender or criminal so our communities are safe and feel safe.

“Dorset remains an area of low crime, which continues to fall, but I want to ensure we are targeting those who wish to cause harm in our communities, while working with partners to solve problems and enhance the life of our residents as a result.”

Chief Constable Chilton, 48, grew up in West Yorkshire and first joined Hampshire Police in 1992 as a constable in Portsmouth.

His career includes working as part of international policing in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2011 as well as working on police reform across Europe.

Closer to home, he has worked across special branch, counter terrorism, police operations and public contact and strategic partnerships for Hampshire Police.

He rose to the rank of Assistant Chief Constable for Hampshire covering crime, criminal justice and intelligence before joining Dorset Police last year.

Chief Constable Chilton added: “We have a recently elected Police and Crime Commissioner in David Sidwick and he will soon be publishing his police and crime plan.

“This will drive our own priorities going forward, which will focus on collaboration and working closely with our partners and communities.

“Policing cannot operate in isolation, so those partnership links will be critical to managing demand and community confidence.

“Maintaining visibility and listening to our communities are also priorities for me and my teams to ensure we are engaging and making a difference to all of our force area.

“Dorset Police wants to make all of our communities safer, but that requires outstanding people. I take the role of chief constable with a team that has performed incredibly well in the last 18 months in often difficult circumstances and facing very high levels of demand.

“I know I am incredibly proud to become chief constable of a force that has some exceptional community resilience and strong partnership links. We must now focus on how we can make a difference to our rural, urban and coastal communities.

“Our communities should expect and deserve to be safe and feel safe and it is my commitment to ensure Dorset, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole receive a first-class policing service.”