New assistant chief constable wants to 'instil hope'

Rachel Shields has been appointed to the post at Avon and Somerset Police

A force's new assistant chief constable has said she wants to "instil hope, confidence and trust".

Rachel Shields has been appointed to the ACC position at Avon and Somerset Police, taking on the role after Will White retired earlier this year.

Ms Shields started her policing career with Royal Ulster Constabulary in Northern Ireland in 1999 as a response constable. She came to Avon and Somerset Police in 2021.

In a statement, she said: "I applied to be ACC because I believe in the importance of policing, especially during times of instability and fear in our communities."

After almost 22 years of service in Northern Ireland, Ms Shields moved to Avon and Somerset Police as a detective superintendent.

Within six months she was promoted to head of investigations, in February 2022.

Ms Shields said: "I want to instil hope, confidence and trust. I will specifically seek to guide our efforts in improving our overall performance, be productive and impactful with the resources we have, support our anti-racism strategy and role model service leadership."

From her time policing in Ireland, Ms Shields has experiences of fractured communities.

She said she hopes the new role will help her to continue to build relationships between communities and the police officers who serve them.

Away from her job, Ms Shields is a mother to two children and said she spends her time cheering them on from the sidelines of a hockey pitch.

Chief Constable Sarah Crew said: "It's rewarding to see someone who so naturally aligned with our vision and values bring her wealth of experience to Avon and Somerset and go on to develop a depth of knowledge of the organisation, its people and our communities.

"I have great hopes for the impact that she will have in this new role both within the constabulary and with our partners and communities."