HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Timothy John Godwin
OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
QPM is a former British police officer, who served as Deputy Commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police Service, from July 2009 until November 2011. He held the post of Acting Commissioner, following the resignation of the Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson in July 2011 and remained in post until his replacement, Bernard Hogan-Howe, was formally appointed on 12 September 2011. Godwin had previously been Acting Deputy Commissioner from December 2008 following the promotion of the previous incumbent, Sir Paul Stephenson, to
Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
; he was substantively appointed Deputy Commissioner in July 2009. He also briefly held the top job as Acting Commissioner in December 2010 when the then Commissioner, Sir Paul Stephenson, took a leave of absence to undergo surgery to remove a tumour. On 8 November 2011, Godwin announced that after 30 years in the police service he was to retire and take a role in the private sector.


Education and Merchant Navy career

Godwin was educated at Haywards Heath Grammar School (now
Central Sussex College Crawley College is a college of further education in West Sussex. It offers courses ranging from Sixth form and Adult education to undergraduate courses through partnerships with universities. History Crawley College was formed in 2017 after a m ...
). He left school at 16 and went to Warsash College of Nautical Studies (which later merged to form Southampton Solent University) before joining the Merchant Navy as a deck officer. He served six years, achieving the rank of Second Officer.


Early police career

Leaving the Merchant Navy, he joined
Sussex Police Sussex Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing in the whole of Sussex. Its jurisdiction covers the ceremonial counties of East Sussex and West Sussex. The force is headquartered in Malling House, Lewes, East Sussex. H ...
in 1981, and had been promoted to
Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...
by 1992. As a Superintendent and
Chief Superintendent Chief superintendent is a senior rank in police forces, especially in those organised on the British model. Rank insignia of chief superintendent File:Sa-police-chief-superintendent.png, South Australia Police File:RCMP Chief Superintendent.png ...
he was Head of Personnel and later Divisional Commander of a large Operational Command Unit, which included
Crawley Crawley () is a large town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a p ...
. In 1996, he was appointed Force Crime Manager for Sussex, which made him responsible for force-level intelligence, crime and drugs operations, scientific support and major crime investigations. He took the Strategic Command Course at the Police Staff College, Bramshill in 1999. He also received a BA (Hons) degree in Public Sector Police Studies from the
University of Portsmouth , mottoeng = Let us follow the Light , established = 1870 (Portsmouth and Gosport School of Science and Art) , type = Public , budget = £282.5 million (2020/21) , chancellor ...
and a Diploma in Applied Criminology from the
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, where he studied at
Fitzwilliam College Fitzwilliam College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer academically excellent students of all ...
.


Metropolitan Police

He was appointed
Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...
in the Metropolitan Police in November 1999 and served as Commander (Crime) for South London, South East Territorial Commander, and then Commander Crime for Territorial Policing. He was promoted to Deputy Assistant Commissioner in Territorial Policing in 2001, then to Assistant Commissioner a year later, making him responsible for everyday policing. During his time in Territorial Policing, he introduced a revitalised forensic strategy, instigated and led the Safer Streets Initiative (which saw robbery reduce by 30 per cent in three years), and through Operation Sapphire he oversaw a complete overhaul of the Metropolitan Police's approach to the investigation of serious sexual assault. This included the introduction of a number of "havens" in London, in partnership with the
National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
, where rape victims can receive immediate medical and psychological support in a non-police environment. Godwin led the National Reassurance Policing Programme with Denis O'Connor. He was also responsible for the implementation of the Safer Neighbourhoods Programme, delivering dedicated teams of officers to wards throughout London. He was the
Association of Chief Police Officers The Association of Chief Police Officers of England, Wales and Northern Ireland (ACPO) was a not-for-profit private limited company that for many years led the development of policing practices in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Established ...
(ACPO) lead on Criminal Justice, tasked with reducing bureaucracy in the preparation of cases and improving integration and working practices with the
Crown Prosecution Service The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal adv ...
, and also the ACPO lead on Mobile Phone Crime, a role he first performed as Assistant Commissioner. He chaired the London Criminal Justice Board. Following the promotion of Sir Paul Stephenson to
Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
, Godwin served as Acting Deputy Commissioner from January 2009 until he was sworn in on 16 July 2009. He then spent a brief period as Britain's most senior police officer as Acting Commissioner from July 2011 until the post was permanently filled by Bernard Hogan-Howe, a former Chief Constable of Merseyside Police in September 2011.


Honours and awards

He received the
Royal Humane Society The Royal Humane Society is a British charity which promotes lifesaving intervention. It was founded in England in 1774 as the ''Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned'', for the purpose of rendering first aid in cases of near dro ...
Testimonial in 1991 for rescuing a man from a high bridge over a railway line, was awarded the runner up prize for Equal Opportunities Achievement in the Police Service by the
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
in 1996, and in 1998 received the National Prize for Public Management Leadership from the Office for Public Management. Godwin was appointed an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(OBE) in the 2003 New Year Honours. He was awarded the
Queen's Police Medal The King's Police Medal (KPM) is awarded to police in the United Kingdom for gallantry or distinguished service. It was also formerly awarded within the wider British Empire, including Commonwealth countries, most of which now have their own hono ...
(QPM) for services to policing in The Queen's 2009 New Year Honours' List.


References


External links


Metropolitan Police profile
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Godwin, Tim Alumni of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Portsmouth British Merchant Navy officers Living people Assistant Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis Deputy Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Haywards Heath English recipients of the Queen's Police Medal Metropolitan Police recipients of the Queen's Police Medal Year of birth missing (living people)