Jo Byrne first female assistant chief constable

Jo Byrne (47) will move from West Midlands Police where she has worked since 1986 in a variety of roles.

She has led a number of initiatives to improve police response and public satisfaction and is also an experienced firearms commander, a role she held throughout the disorder in Birmingham in August 2011.

Her current portfolio at West Midlands is learning, development and quality.

She said: “I’m thrilled and excited to have been selected as the assistant chief constable and very much look forward to working with the many different communities in South Yorkshire.

“I’ve been made very welcome and already feel part of the policing family.”

Chief constable David Crompton said he was delighted that Mrs Byrne was joining the Force.

“She is a hugely capable and highly-experienced officer whose dynamism, drive and creativity will be of great benefit to the people of South Yorkshire," he said.

Mrs Byrne has a BA in Criminal Justice and Policing from the University of Central England and a Masters degree in Applied Criminology and Police Management from Cambridge.

She is married and lives in Derbyshire. When not at work, Mrs Byrne is a keen horse rider.