Brighton police officer promoted to district commander in Chichester

A Brighton police officer has been promoted to become district commander in Chichester for Sussex Police.

Chief Inspector Justin Burtenshaw starts his new job on Wednesday (15 January).

For most of his 16-year career with the force, the former Cardinal Newman schoolboy and Brighton University graduate has been based in Brighton and Hove.

He said: “Most recently I have led the Safe in the City Team at Brighton which deals with all aspects of community safety and partnership work.

“This work includes anti-social behaviour and hate crime, street community work, youth and intervention work and engagement with different communities and travellers as well.

Justin Burtenshaw

“I also ran the investigation team for Brighton and Hove Albion football matches.

“I am keen for my teams to think of innovative ideas to benefit the wider community.

“An example of this was the Alcohol Diversion Scheme that I introduced in Brighton in 2012 to tackle binge drinking and alcohol-related crime and anti-social behaviour.

“This scheme was recently launched across West Sussex and will undoubtedly have similar successes that we have seen in Brighton.

“Outside of work my big passion is sport. I am a huge Tottenham Hotspur fan so I am often grumpy on a Saturday afternoon.

“When I am not working, watching Spurs or spending time with my family, you will find me relaxing by a lake, fishing.”

“I live in West Sussex with my wife, 11-year-old daughter and Bouncer the border collie.

“Becoming district commander for Chichester will be both challenging and exciting for me.

“I’ve inherited an amazing team of officers and staff with a strong sense of identity and team spirit. These are key reasons why I am so excited about my new role.

“I know that partnership working is also a strength within the Chichester district and I relish the opportunity to develop this further.”

He replaces Tanya Jones who becomes the crime manager for West Sussex.

Detective Chief Inspector Jones said: “I thoroughly enjoyed working in Chichester as the district commander.

“I had the pleasure of working in a really great city with a great community spirit, a fantastic team of officers and alongside some committed partner agencies who I have been honoured to work alongside.”