Devon and Cornwall Police have appointed Assistant Chief Constable (ACC) Jim Pearce to take on the Operations Portfolio, a role which will see him leading the specialist uniform operations, including public order, roads policing, operations planning and resourcing.

Jim takes up his post this month, after having held the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) Portfolio for Modern Slavery and Organised Immigration Crime since last year.

Prior to his ACC role, Jim worked as the Policing Commander for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly for over six years, a role which he was very proud of having grown up in the County. Jim was responsible for the uniformed and neighbourhood policing deployment and capability across the County. He has broad experience of partnership working, which included being the Chair of the Community Safety Partnership for over three years and a collaborative lead in delivering the first ever Tri-Service Safety Officer scheme. A scheme which has become an exemplar for other forces across the UK.

Jim has an extensive background within operational and incident command and is an accredited Public Order Public Safety Gold Commander, overseeing the police response to events and major incidents such as protests, sporting and music events and leading multi-agency critical incidents. He is also a Strategic Firearms Commander responsible for directing armed operations across the force.

ACC Jim Pearce (pictured)said: “This is a privileged position that I have been invited to take, and I’m looking forward to returning into the Force to further the ambitions of this professional portfolio of work in keeping our communities safe.”