Sir Mark Rowley QPM

Sir Mark was knighted in the 2018 Birthday honours for his “exceptional contribution to national security at a time of unprecedented threat and personally providing reassuring national leadership through the attacks of 2017”. He has a very wide policing experience and expertise from counter terrorism to community policing and including major events policing, public order and serious and organised crime and has a reputation as an innovative and transformational leader.

Having retired from policing in March and two months traveling in Nepal and India he is beginning new leadership challenges, still centred upon secure and thriving communities, turning his expertise, energy, innovation and enthusiasm to several new positions as Chair, Non-Executive Director and Strategic Advisor across private, public and third sectors.

Sir Mark led UK Counter Terrorism Policing (UKCTP) for four years, during an unprecedented surge of threat (the ‘caliphate’ being declared on his second day in post), strengthening police capabilities and increasing closer working with both community policing and intelligence agencies to prevent an unprecedented 27 Islamist and extreme right wing plots. He led the national police responses to the five attacks of 2017 producing an upswelling of public confidence in the police.

Sir Mark joined the MPS as an Assistant Commissioner in December 2011, immediately after the London riots. Whilst supporting the policing of the 2012 Olympics, he led the response to these events, transforming approaches to policing gangs (shootings down 42%) and public order - new methods have ensured no repeat of the disorder sparked at protests and seen in London several times in the years up to and including the London riots. He also led for Scotland Yard on fraud and organised crime and was responsible for many major police operations such as policing the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and reforming the policing of football in London.

Prior to joining the MPS, he was Chief Constable of Surrey for four years. He led a radical change programme, addressing austerity budget cuts yet increasing frontline officers whilst leading Surrey to massive reductions in serious crime and the highest level of public confidence in the country. His policing career began in 1987 in West Midlands Police, having graduated from St Catharine’s College, Cambridge.