The appointment was announced by Chief Constable Scott Chilton. He said: “I am thrilled to announce that Sam de Reya has been selected as the new deputy chief constable, Sam shares my approach on being tough on crime and doing everything we can to make Dorset an even safer county.”

There were a number of applicants for the position within the executive team who went through a rigorous appointment process.

In April 2020, Sam de Reya was appointed as assistant chief constable for Dorset Police and stepped up as temporary deputy chief constable in August 2021 pending this selection process. Prior to this she has spent the last several years in Devon & Cornwall Police as chief superintendent and commander leading frontline policing services, investigation, neighbourhood policing and partnerships.

As a senior female police officer and former gender representative of the Police Superintendents’ Association, Sam is actively involved in supporting equal opportunities and inclusion. She established the South West Women in Leadership programme in 2013, to help female police personnel to fulfil their full potential.

Sam de Reya said “I’m delighted to be stepping up to the substantive deputy chief constable role to continue to lead and support our workforce and communities and to deliver the best possible service to keep everyone safe in Dorset.”