Chief constable gets green light to retire for one day

 Richard Evans, local democracy reporter

The chief constable of North Wales Police has been given permission to retire for one day in order to protect her pension.

North Wales Police Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman had requested the Police and Crime Commissioner Andy Dunbobbin’s approval to participate in the national “retire and rehire” scheme.

He then asked for the support of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel in approving the move.

The scheme is described as a way that police can “retain skills, knowledge and experience of police officers at all levels”.

Agreeing the scheme effectively allows her to formally retire as an officer before she is reappointed to the same rank the next day in her £170K-a-year job.

The break in service ensures that “pension entitlement can be abated without any impact on entitlement to lump sum or monthly payments”.

A report said the break would “not create any additional cost to the taxpayer”. At a North Wales Police and Crime Panel meeting on Monday (15 December), the panel voted behind closed doors to “unanimously” offer their support.

Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman said: “I’m making this application understanding and knowing that I could retire but wanting to carry on with my role here as Chief Constable in North Wales, not only because of the fact we have work to do and things to achieve still but also in the changing landscape that we are seeing across policing at the moment.

“Only in the past week or so we’ve seen press articles about the changes of the sizes and scales of forces across the country, and I think it is really important we have an experienced leader at the helm of North Wales Police so that we are able to put the voice of our communities forward as those deliberations are taking place.”

She added: “I want to ensure that we have the very best for our communities here in North Wales and that we ensure they get the very best police service that we can deliver.”

Uncertainty

Mr Dunbobbin said the retire and rehire scheme was open to all police officers including chief constables and was designed to retain the skills of officers.

He added: “It must be noted that the Chief Constable’s request comes at a time of greater reform within policing in the UK and at a time of tremendous uncertainty. I believe consistency and continuity of leadership will be of great benefit to the force.”

The report said: “The Chief Constable intends to take a break in service for one day only, 16 January 2026.

“During this period, in line with the legislative requirement for every police force area in England and Wales to have a chief constable in post at any given time, the Deputy Chief Constable will be acting Chief Constable.”

Ms Blakeman’s reappointment will be for a period of three years, the maximum that can be awarded for a second fixed-term agreement.