Cambridgeshire Chief Constable, Nick Dean, has reconsidered his decision to retire and extended his contract.

He announced earlier this year he would retire from the service in September after a 31-year career, five of which have been in Cambridgeshire, where he became Chief Constable in September 2018. But he has changed his mind.

Mr Dean said: “Announcing my retirement was the hardest decision I have taken and over the past few weeks I have reflected on that decision and realised that now is not the right time for me.

“I love my role; it is an absolute privilege to serve the people of Cambridgeshire and I remain incredibly passionate about policing.

“I therefore formally approached the Police and Crime Commissioner for an extension to my contract which I am grateful that he has accepted.”

A spkesperson for the PCC's office told Police Oracle it is in the process of finalising the terms and conditions of the extension including its duration.

They added: "We had begun the recruitment process for his replacement and published an advertisement, however we had not reached the closing date for applications when the Commissioner received the request from Mr Dean regarding an extension to his contract. At that point the recruitment process was paused and has now been formally withdrawn."

Mr Dean first joined Norfolk Constabulary in September 1992, where he progressed through each rank up to Chief Superintendent, serving in uniform and crime investigation roles.

Prior to being promoted to Assistant Chief Constable, he was head of CID and then Chief Superintendent for the county’s local policing structure. 

He was appointed Temporary Assistant Chief Constable in Norfolk in June 2013 and was made substantive ACC in May 2016; he became temporary Deputy Chief Constable in October 2016.

Mr Dean was substantively promoted to DCC in February 2017 and joined Cambridgeshire Constabulary as Chief Constable in September 2018.

For the last three years he has been the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) portfolio lead for forensics and charging.