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Croydon could be about to get its first black top cop

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Croydon could be about the get its first BAME top cop.

Jeff Boothe: tipped to be Borough Commander

According to information shared at a Safer Neighbourhood Team event this week, Andy Tarrant, the present Borough Commander, is to step down and be replaced by Chief Superintendent Jeff Boothe.

Boothe, 51, is originally from Thornton Heath and from November will take over responsibility for policing in Croydon after 18 months in a similar job in Bexley.

Boothe has spent the majority of his career in London, including 24 years with British Transport Police. He has extensive Public Order and Events Experience performing key leadership roles for events covering the Olympics, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Notting Hill Carnival and the capital’s New Year’s celebrations.

The news of the appointment of a senior BAME – black, Asian and minority ethnic – officer to take charge of policing in one of the country’s most diverse boroughs comes just a fortnight after the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, called for the Met Police to “look like the communities it is charged with keeping safe”.

Khan said: “This is not about tokenism but about building trust and respect between our vital police force and all Londoners.”

According to figures this month, 13 per cent of the Met’s total police workforce is non-white. Boothe is one of 4,033 officers from minorities in the Metropolitan Police, up from 3,163 in 2013.


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