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Chief Officer Nick Adams

Nick is the Chief Officer for Finance, Resources and Innovation at Avon and Somerset Police. He joined in 2008.

Chief Officer Nick Adams, Avon and Somerset Police

Nick has held a number of roles within the organisation, including heading up the Transformation and Improvement directorate which helps the organisation to plan and deliver business improvement. 

In his chief officer role, Nick is responsible for a large portfolio of services ranging from information technology to facilities management.

Nick says:

“Having been born in Southmead Hospital and grown up in South Gloucestershire, I am immensely proud to work for my home police service, where I can make a difference to the community in which my family, friends and I live our lives. 

“Every day I am inspired by colleagues from across the organisation. My aim is to ensure we continue to provide them with the best support – including technological support – to make them as effective as they can be in keeping our communities safe.

“Like many of us, my life is touched by those family and friends who live with disability. As the chief officer leading on disability and neurodiversity, I am proud to help ensure those living with disability are able to achieve their full potential with us.”

“Having helped guide Avon and Somerset Police through the challenges of austerity, I am energised by the opportunities now presented by investment in policing. Building on our solid foundations, I believe the introduction of extra police officers will help us toward our vision of providing outstanding policing to everyone.”

Key responsibilities
  • Finance
  • Information Technology
  • Procurement
  • Estates and Facilities Management
  • Fleet Management
  • Enquiry Offices
  • Administrative functions
  • Chief officer lead for disability, neurodiversity and religion
Biography
  • 2002 – PricewaterhouseCoopers – initial training working with a large range of public, private and third-sector clients
  • 2005 – Qualified as a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW)
  • 2008 – Principal Accountant at Avon and Somerset Police
  • 2009 – Head of Finance
  • 2018 – Deputy Director – Transformation and Improvement
  • 2018 – Chief Officer – Finance, Resources and Innovation
Career highlights and achievements
  • Leading Avon and Somerset Police through the Government’s austerity measures and making savings of £80 million over nine years.
  • Instrumental in creating the 2017 ‘Tipping Point’ report, which analysed the demand on Avon and Somerset Police against its finances and workforce wellbeing. This helped to shape discussions around police funding at a national level.
  • Responsible for introducing the first Force Management Statement in spring 2018. This set out the full picture of demand across the organisation, areas of concern and risk, strengths and areas for development. It is now produced annually.
  • Led on pulling together the many plans and strategies for improvement and change across the organisation into a single strategy clearly setting out Avon and Somerset Police’s mission, value and vision. This has been implemented since 2018.
  • Ensuring the organisation delivers increased police officer numbers within Avon and Somerset in support of the national recruitment campaign of 20,000 officers by March 2023.
  • Overseeing investment in Robotic Process Automation with repetitive processes such as uniform ordering now managed automatically, freeing staff for more rewarding roles.
  • Managing the transformation of the organisation’s estates, including refurbishing and delivering suitable new buildings across the area within available budget.
  • Chief officer leading on disability and neurodiversity and religion, and helping to ensure no barriers to people achieving their full potential with Avon and Somerset Police.
Qualifications, awards and recognition
  • LLB (Hons), Oxford Brookes University
  • Fellow of the ICAEW
Personal life
  • Nick is married with two children.
  • He enjoys watching both cricket and football and is a keen film fan.
  • Since 2013, Nick has been a voluntary trustee of the Wheels Project, which centres on crime prevention and offers life skills and practical training, some of which carry nationally accredited awards, to socially excluded teenagers who may be struggling with academic studies or have low attendance levels.
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