Former Thames Valley Police Chief Constable Francis Habgood has been recruited by Bucks County Council to work in a vital safeguarding role.

Mr Habgood will take over as the independent chair of the Buckinghamshire Safeguarding Children Board (BSCB) and the Buckinghamshire Safeguarding Adults Board (BSAB). He will take over in the new role in August.

Having worked for Thames Valley Police for over 32 years, the former Chief Constable will be working to ensure local services work together to safeguard both vulnerable children and adults from abuse and neglect.

Francis Habgood said: “I have spent my whole career protecting the most vulnerable members of our society, so I am delighted to be able to carry on doing this work in my home county. I look forward to ensuring that those organisations that safeguard children and adults do so in the most effective way and work closely together.

"I am grateful for the work that my predecessors have started and am excited about the opportunities that lie ahead."

Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Children's Services, said: "We know that the best way to protect our children and young people is to work together across organisations and we look forward to Francis driving ongoing improvements in our partnership arrangements in helping to achieve this."

Lin Hazell, Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said: "I'm delighted that we’ve been able to recruit someone of Francis' calibre to this vital role. He brings with him a wealth of experience and I’m looking forward to utilising his knowledge to support and challenge our work in Buckinghamshire."