See Manifesto Summary page for a summary, or download the full document as a pdf here:6255 PCC Manifesto Nick O’Shea – A Fresh Start for Surrey

The Liberal Democrats’ programme to deliver Safe Communities for the People of Surrey

Introduction by Baroness Margaret Sharp of Guildford

Surrey is one of the safest places to live in England with just 57 crimes per 1000 people per year, the 7th best rate in the country. Public satisfaction with Surrey Police was over 84% last year – how many politicians have an approval rating that high?

However, Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Constabulary estimate that between 20% and 40% of all crimes go unreported, while the detection rate for serious crimes in Surrey last year was less than 20% compared to a national average of 28%.

The complacent approach by some Conservative and “Independent” candidates for Police & Crime Commissioner is not acceptable. There are opportunities that could and must be taken to improve and develop policing and criminal justice for the people of Surrey. Labour’s concentration on “anti-privatisation” to the exclusion of all else is simplistic and irrelevant. They are ignoring the need to put the quality and cost effectiveness of police and criminal justice services ahead of a doctrinaire approach to their provision.

No matter how relatively ‘safe’ and low-crime Surrey is, the impact on those people who are the victims of crime is the same – perhaps worse since they feel more isolated as few others have had experience of crime as they have.

Since his selection as the Liberal Democrat’s candidate for Police & Crime Commissioner in July, Nick O’Shea has visited every borough and district in Surrey. He has been meeting local residents, their police officers, and members of the agencies responsible for support and criminal justice services such as local councillors, the Probation Service and Victim Support. He has been listening to what they all have to say and think about the quality of policing and effectiveness of our justice system. From what they have said, it is clear that most people are generally happy with these services. But they have been telling him that there is still room for improvement and that changes are necessary.

As Surrey’s Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea has said that he will have three priorities:

1 delivering effective neighbourhood and front-line policing

2 significantly improve detection to reduce crime and repeat offending

3 giving quality support to the victims and witnesses of crime

These are not the only goals or initiatives to improve policing and the criminal justice system Nick O’Shea wants to deliver, but they form the core of his approach to ensuring Surrey’s residents have the most effective, most reliable and most trustworthy police and justice services in the country.
This election is not about who runs the economy or even the Home Office. It is for the people of Surrey to choose a resident who knows the county well, understands the issues local people have about policing, crime and justice, and can deliver an effective police and justice service.
I urge you to support Nick as the first Police & Crime Commissioner for Surrey, to go out and vote for him on 15th November.

Baroness Margaret Sharp

Priorities for delivering the most effective, most reliable and most trustworthy police and justice services in the country

Effective Neighbourhood Policing for local people
To be truly effective at a local level, policing needs to be focused on delivering solutions to crime and the fear of crime specific for each local community. To deliver a seamless service tailored to the local needs, expectations and circumstances, neighbourhood police teams need to work increasingly closely with ordinary local people was well as local councils, agencies such housing associations, the county council’s trading standards, youth, education and social services, community organisations, victims’ groups and residents’ representatives

Surrey Police’s relationship with the public it serves has been a cornerstone of how Surrey Police has worked for and protected the public for over a century. However, somewhere along the way this changed to an expectation that the police only “do” law enforcement. A critical empathy with the public became irrelevant and the concept of “citizens in uniform” somehow got lost.

This failure to recognise its real role in society must be addressed and focus brought back to the quality of policing delivered; with integration into the community they serve a key priority for Surrey Police.

The role of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) who work just within their own communities will be enhanced as it is increasingly important since they provide a local and familiar face for their residents which compliments the services provided by warranted officers. They provide a critical link between ordinary citizens in the community and the Specialist Neighbourhood Officers.

Significantly improve detection to reduce crime and repeat offences
Surrey Police’s record in detecting crime must be improved. The criminal justice system also needs to identify and tackle the causes of crime as well as reduce the opportunities and temptations to commit crime. It must identify the relatively small number of high repeat offenders and focus on preventing them from committing further crime.

Further focus on neighbourhood policing, police visibility and identifying criminals will improve crime detection and discourage both first-time and repeat offender. Whenever appropriate, offenders and their victims should be brought together through increased use of restorative justice. This will benefit victims by bringing improved closure and restitution and offenders by raising their awareness of the damage their crimes cause and reducing the likelihood that they will commit further offences. Studies have shown that restorative justice does work in reducing reoffending. It is not a ‘soft option’ and can include physical work to repair damage and make good any harm caused.

Particular focus must be given to working with the London Mayor’s Office and criminal justice services in London to ensure they fulfil their duty to reduce repeat offences by criminals from their area who currently commit a significant proportion of the crimes in Surrey.

Supporting Victims and Witnesses of Crime
Victim support must be more than just a tick-box exercise. As victims and witnesses gain confidence in the certainty and quality of this support, more who have suffered in silence and fear will come forward to report previously unreported assaults and violent crimes, especially domestic violence, sexual abuse and white-collar crime. They will then be able to receive the protection, help and support they need to cope with it and recover from its effects but would not have any opportunity to receive without the crime being reported.

If elected as Police & Crime Commissioner for Surrey, Nick O’Shea will work with Surrey Police and other agencies involved including Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), magistrates, Victim Support, Probation, Youth and Social Services and charities like Barnardo’s and Platform 51 to ensure victims and witnesses receive the support they really need.

Restorative Justice should be used whenever appropriate to improve the outcome of both convictions and cautions. It is also an important tool to help victims in the majority of cases there the perpetrators are not identified.?

A new way to plan policing and criminal justice

As well as these three key priorities, Nick O’Shea will take a fresh approach to both planning and delivering the police and criminal justice services for the county’s residents.

Consultative Police & Crime Commissioner
As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will create a Consultative Council for representatives nominated by local authorities (county, district, parish and town councils), local organisations (chambers of commerce, residents’ associations, victims’ organisations) stakeholder agencies and service providers (probation, education, youth, social, probation and health services, victim support and the Crown Prosecution Service).

The representatives would be ambassadors for their particular area or organisation, acting as its advocate with the Police & Crime Commissioner and their colleagues in the Consultative Council, with the opportunity to debate the relative merit of competing demands for funding from the Police & Crime Commissioner’s budget as well as identifying areas which need further attention.

The Police & Crime Commissioner is required to consult widely in developing and delivering the policing plan. This consultative council will facilitate this process, although the Police & Crime Commissioner will still be directly available to every resident in the county.

The Police & Crime Commissioner’s budget commitment for this would be limited to funding administrative support for the Consultative Council. Individuals and organisations with representation would be expected to pay their own expenses for participation and attending its meetings.

As a District Councillor Nick O’Shea represented local people in Mole Valley for 8 years, where he gained experience in seeking, representing and acting on local residents’ views and concerns.

Police Plan for each Borough and District
The Police & Crime Commissioner has a duty to develop and publish a Policing Plan for the county, after consultation with members of the public and in particular victims’ groups. The performance of the police is then assessed against the criteria laid down in that plan.

The Consultative Council would have significant input into that plan, although any organisation or individual would be welcome and encouraged to make submissions if they wish to.

Also, each borough and district will have its own Police Plan which will be developed by the Police & Crime Commissioner in consultation with the local Community Safety Partnership, local advocates, residents and representative organisations. The plan will identify the crime issues for the local communities and provide priorities for tackling them.

Police Plans at both county and borough or district level will focus on what the main issues are and the local priorities for how these will be tackled. The number of targets and use of statistical performance measurement will be avoided as far as possible. Their objective must be to improve the effectiveness of policing in the locality, not replacing one set of targets and paper-work with another.

An accessible Police & Crime Commissioner
If elected as Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will relocate his offices from Mount Browne Police HQ to shared offices in one of the main towns in the county, probably Guildford, Woking or Dorking. This will make him more available to members of the public and will demonstrate the separation between the Police and the Commissioner, who has a far wider remit than the old Police Authority.

The Police & Crime Commissioner must be ‘highly visible’, visiting or contacting victims of crime and communities where there is a fear of crime, to show leadership and hear directly from those affected.

A fresh start to tackling crime
The election of a Police & Crime Commissioner is part of a fresh start because many feel that the existing arrangements for over-seeing the police are undemocratic and no longer serve their purpose properly. Many feel they have failed to deliver their objective of providing the public with a proper voice in the way police over-sight is managed. Therefore the Police Authority which is made up mostly of appointed county councillors and JPs is being swept way, and significant changes are taking place.

Liberal Democrats do not believe that putting this much power into the hands of one individual is the right way to solve this problem. However given that this is the solution put into place by the government, Liberal Democrats in Surrey are determined to make it work for the people of Surrey.

This is why we have selected in Nick O’Shea someone we believe to be the best person for the job.

This is why he is committed to ensuring genuine public participation and consultation.

This is why he will create a Consultative Committee to give as many local organisation and communities as possible a voice in determining policing priorities.

This is why he will give each borough or district’s Community Safety Partnership real influence over the policing plan for their area.

The issue of what sort of people are best suited to fulfil this new role was highlighted in the recent debate about whether members of the police authority and JPs should even be allowed to stand for these elections. And if elected, whether they would really be capable of seeing through the scale of changes required to deliver the improvements we need.

We believe that Nick O’Shea is the most capable candidate for this role – he is a successful local businessman, with a wealth of experience and capability. He is not a current or past JP, Police officer or Police Authority member, lawyer, professional politician or would-be MP.

In fact – Nick O’Shea is just the person we need to lead the fresh start.

A new way to deliver policing and criminal justice

Improved detection of crimes
If elected Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will make detecting crime the most important area for improvement. It is essential that Surrey Police work at all levels from the local street to internationally to improve detection and bring more offenders to account for their crimes.

Neighbourhood policing means more than just having a local commander for each borough and district and basing beat officers in the local council’s offices. Access to the full range of support services and facilities as locally as possible is necessary for effective crime response and improved detection. Locally-based officers who know the area and possible perpetrators should be available to attend crime scenes quickly and investigate crimes with greater success.

The change made to crime investigation under the ‘Staying Ahead’ programme twelve years ago separated the response teams from investigating officers. This resulted in officers attending the scene of a crime, or making an arrest, not having ‘ownership’ of the case and the quality of investigation is known to have suffered as a consequence. Although the Police & Crime Commissioner is not responsible for operational delivery of policing decisions, he would encourage the Chief Constable to reconsider this issue.

One major problem in Surrey is crime committed by offenders coming from outside the county, often – although not always – from London. This will only decline if Surrey Police improve their rapid attendance and detection of these crimes, and then Surrey’s criminal justice agencies work more successfully with those responsible for crime and re-offence reduction in surrounding areas.

Another equally serious problem is represented by anti-social and violent behaviour, frequently involving vulnerable and young people. This can only be tackled by local officers on the streets.

As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will ensure sufficient local officers are on the streets in areas they know and are known in well, working with local businesses, residents and organisations as well as other agencies to reduce the opportunities for crime.

Focus on outcomes instead of management by statistical targets
If elected Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will focus on the outcome of every incident instead of relying simply on statistical performance indicators which ignore the consequences of individual cases.

Quality policing needs to be focused on delivering the most effective solutions to crime and the fear of crime. It cannot be achieved by striving to meet an overbearing excess of targets and performance indicators. Policing, crime and justice are complex and inter-active systems that do not lend themselves to the simplistic approach of target measurement, however appealing or convenient that may sound.

Just as building a dual carriageway in a location where there are always traffic jams just moves the traffic jams, so trying to solve complex policing, crime and justice problems with detailed targets just changes the nature and location of crime and criminal activity. For instance having a ‘detection’ target means that anything done to improve crime ‘prevention’ will have a negative effect on the target figure. In fact there is a temptation to focus only on ‘easy to solve crime’ to satisfy that target. A more sophisticated approach through holistic management of policing and criminal justice is needed to reduce overall crime. Consequently, whilst overall offending and detection rates will continue to be used and reported, focus will be on how effectively every incident is handled and the quality of the outcome for the victims.

Between a quarter and a half of all crimes currently go unreported , so their victims get no help and the police cannot investigate crimes they do not know about. Therefore it is good to increase the proportion of crimes that are reported. Even if that looks like an increase in crime, it is really an improvement in the reporting of an existing level of crime.

For example, an increasingly supportive approach to victims of sexual or abuse crimes will encourage greater reporting of such crimes. More victims will then receive the help and protection they need even if proportionately fewer offenders are identified. This would probably show as both an increase in this category of crime and a reduction in the detection rate, both of which might be seen as a worsening of the situation if target performance measurement is the approach taken when assessing performance.

However, the reality would be that more victims will have received help they needed. There is also a greater opportunity for the police to identify more offenders because they are aware of more offences. So despite what target and performance measurements indicate, in fact the situation has improved considerably.

We won’t be able to break away totally from targets and ratios, if for no other reason than Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Constabulary (HMIC) and the Home Office require them. But any we set or use must be put into context to ensure people fully understood what they are telling us. Putting context and interpretation around these will avoid the temptation to fall into the spread sheet mentality of performance management.

Consequently although a few critical targets will still be monitored, the key to understanding performance is what and why changes happen, rather than just making achievement of a particular target sufficient in itself. Other candidates may propose setting a larger number of targets in a grossly bureaucratic way. The Liberal Democrat’s approach will free-up the police to focus on their core tasks, to get more crimes reported so victims can be helped and perpetrators sought, with focus on the specific outcome of every incident.

Nick O’Shea has been a director and senior manager of organisations and businesses for over a decade. During this time, he has developed and managed delivery of objectives and has held top management accountable for delivery of operational and strategic performance.

Managing the outcomes of crime
If elected Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will work with Surrey Police, the CPS, Victim Support and victims of individual crimes to achieve the most appropriate outcome from every crime.

This might mean in some cases which are minor, non-violent or a first-time offence that the Police Caution may be more suitable. However, the needs of the victims will always be given particular weight and the Probation Service usually involved with post-caution management.

Victims frequently feel forgotten and isolated, particularly where the perpetrators of a crime cannot be successfully identified and brought to justice. The police must regularly let victims know how the investigation of their case is progressing. All victims must be given the opportunity to benefit from support services and restorative justice to provide some closure even in unsolved cases.

Where the offenders are from outside Surrey, as Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will work with the justice agencies responsible for reducing re-offending in the offender’s local area to ensure they fulfil their duty to reduce repeat offences by criminals from their area who currently commit a significant proportion of the crimes in Surrey.

Particular focus must be given to working with the London Mayor’s Office and criminal justice services in London in this respect.

Integrated local delivery of policing and related services
If elected Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will propose that existing Community Safety Partnerships be empowered to directly oversee appropriate matters. These could include joint management of the local provision of services such as on-street parking enforcement, trading standards enforcement and investigations of rogue trading and door-step cons, routine police foot patrols, adoption and enforcement of alcohol control areas, provision and promotion of youth facilities and Environmental Health Services relating to issues such as nuisance, public order and anti-social behaviour.

Neighbourhood Policing does not mean just locating police stations within local council offices. It also means having Police Officers and Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) readily available and visible to members of the public. The invaluable role of volunteer Special Constables should also be recognised as further supporting the ethos of integrating policing into the community being policed.

With Nick O’Shea as Police & Crime Commissioner, Surrey Police will strive to be highly visible, and respond rapidly to serious incidents or threatening situations, with back-office and support services provided by non-warranted but experienced and efficient civilian staff.

Nick O’Shea has a profound understanding of policing in Surrey – through his family’s involvement with policing in Surrey for nearly a century, and from the advice he is now receiving from a number of retired Surrey Police officers on the development and application of the proposals he is making here to deliver effective policing for Surrey.

Work with Police in other areas
A great many Surrey residents live within the shadow of crime from London.

With Nick O’Shea as Police & Crime Commissioner, Surrey Police will work as much as possible with other police and criminal justice services, particularly from London, to address this. They will also work through the National Crime Agency and similar regional, national and international agencies and collaboratively with individual or groups of police services as necessary. Whether the crime is drugs being pushed in Surrey schools and colleges by London dealers or our residents’ homes being burgled by London gangs using the M3, A3, M25 and our excellent rail service as a fast escape route back home, we will target them, we will catch them, we will prosecute them and we will stop them.

Policing, crime and justice are complex and inter-active systems which operate at many levels – local, regional, national and international. Nor do criminals respect police service or even international boundaries.

Some police functions may be more effectively and efficiently delivered at regional level or by working with other local forces. This approach has already resulted in a firearms group and a senior officer being shared with Sussex Police, an approach which should be explored further.

Opportunities to improve purchasing efficiencies and benefits from shared services and resources such as HR and finance will be progressed, either through collaboration with other local police services and local authorities or contractors from the private sector – although no front-line roles or personal data should be provided by or shared with private sector.

Work with other agencies to identify and achieve common goals
As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will work to facilitate cooperation between all statutory, voluntary and charity organisations active in the wider criminal justice system. This includes Surrey County Council’s social, youth and education services, Surrey NHS, and the many voluntary and charity organisations, both in the county and in neighbouring areas such as London which can all help with achieving our goals.

To succeed, his approach will require the willing cooperation of all these bodies involved in providing these services. These include Surrey County Council and the borough and district councils as well as the many voluntary and statutory agencies. However, their involvement in developing the Policing Plan through the consultative process being proposed will enable them to see that their interests and priorities for delivering the services they are responsible for are satisfied.

The Police & Crime Commissioner’s Consultative Council would provide a key link in this approach, with the members serving as ambassadors for their particular area or organisation, assisting the Police & Crime Commissioner and his staff with the development and management of these arrangements.

As financial pressures increase, the ability to fund many non-core services is under serious pressure. As a consequence, even more reliance will come to be made on the army of volunteers who already provide invaluable and frequently unrecognised services, whether as Special Constables or through charities and voluntary organisations such as Victim Support.

The invaluable contribution made by these volunteers must be recognised. Their continued enthusiasm and support for the services they provide will be acknowledged through enabling their participation in planning the delivery of these services. The many Surrey residents who participated and gained from the huge boost to volunteering seen in the recent Olympics and Paralympics can take up the continuing opportunities available in supporting this invaluable work as Special Constables or with victims and witnesses as a way of building on these events’ fantastic legacy.

Nick O’Shea has worked in the public, private and voluntary sectors. He has been a leading district councillor and chairman of the DSO board and later consultant to the NHS. He has been a director and manager in the private sector, sometime working on contracts with the public sector. He has worked with housing and drug-abuse charities and more recently with sports clubs. This means that he understands the very different ways in which these sectors operate and has extensive experience in how to ensure they work together to achieve their common goals.

Police Cadet Apprenticeship Scheme
As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will re-introduce a cadet scheme to improve opportunities to recruit and train new PCs. This would have minimal cost as it could be funded from the Government’s Youth Training and Contract schemes, with applications to join the scheme accepted from young adults aged 18-24.

Once trained, Cadet Officers can assist in some of the low level tasks that currently keep patrol officers off the streets, such as fingerprinting, transcribing interviews and statement taking. Together with using civilian support staff this will help warranted officers get back on the beat faster following an arrest, and encourage more arrests for offences such as anti-social behaviour.

Real life experience is essential preparation for police recruits to be able to appreciate the problems and concerns of the people they work with and help in the community. Having recruits from all sections of the community and with a wide range of backgrounds will help remove the barriers between police and other members of the community they serve. A cadet programme run along the lines of an apprenticeship scheme will greatly encourage and facilitate this, encouraging recruits from less advantaged backgrounds and those whose first choice career may not have been policing to join.
Enforcement
The approach Nick O’Shea will take as Police & Crime Commissioner to enforcement in the Policing Plan will reflect the priority given by the public for dealing with crimes such as violence, sexual abuse drugs, and crimes which cause residents the most concern such as anti-social behaviour, burglary and vehicle speeding.

Where resources are limited, blanket 100% enforcement of all rules and laws is not an option. Therefore, operational enforcement of rules such as alcohol control areas, and speed limits will be managed in cooperation with local representatives and the Community Safety Partnerships in each Borough and District. This will result in the community and its representatives having significant influence in determining the allocation of limited resources to deliver what it sees as the relative priorities in its area.

This will not detract from the duty of the Police to enforce the law and take such enforcement action on an operational front as the Chief Constable determines is necessary. However it will influence their prioritisation for example of enforcement of speed limits between different locations with higher and lower risks to road safety or of alcohol sale and use in areas with high and lower alcohol-related public order issues.

As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will also work with residents’ and trade associations, business and special interest organisations such as the Chambers of Commerce, AA/RAC and pub managers to improve compliance and enforcement in areas such as the sale of alcohol, knives and abuse of substances, and the observance of trading standards regulations and speed limits.

Responsible Surrey Trader and Citizen Schemes
If elected as Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will identify ways to work with and expand the scope of existing schemes or create new ones to promote responsible and law abiding behaviour among traders and members of the public.

“Responsible Surrey Citizen” and “Responsible Surrey Trader” schemes will be used to encourage those who voluntarily comply with the law and regulations, with sponsored awards and promotion of such businesses, and discounts for selected services and goods.

Value for Money spending
It is imperative that every pound counts particularly as Surrey residents pay about half the total police budget through their police precept. This is the greatest contribution to an area’s police budget of anywhere in England and Wales. Where Surrey residents pay nearly half, nationally the typical precept is little more than a quarter of the total cost of policing.

Every initiative being put forward by the Liberal Democrats has been costed and will either be delivered within the present budget or will be at least cost-neutral in the way things are done therefore adding no incremental costs and sometimes saving money by working more effectively and efficiently.

As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will work with the Chief Constable to eliminate ineffective expenditure and paperwork by focusing on service quality and outcome rather than statistical target driven performance management, ensuring cost-effective support services and that non-core operations are limited to those absolutely necessary to enable effective delivery of front line and core services.

Opportunities to work with other police services, support agencies, charities and private sector contractors will be sought wherever they offer improvement to or more cost effective service delivery.

Nick O’Shea has the ability to improve cost effectiveness as an experienced finance director who has ensured organisations are made to run as efficiently as possible, without detracting from their effectiveness or the quality of the service they provide to their customers, in this case, the people of Surrey.

Trustworthy Policing and Support
Transparent and totally trustworthy policing is a fundamental requirement for a fair and just society. It should therefore go without saying that Surrey Police and anyone working within organisations supporting Surrey Police or the Police & Crime Commissioner’s initiatives should as a minimum respect all individual’s rights and liberties under UK and European laws, including PACE regulations.

As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will ensure that any contracts or arrangements with private contractors, agencies and charities for provision of support services let out by him or on his behalf will require similar compliance, and even where not required by law would also make the provider subject to supervision and investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

A long term vision
Surrey Police Authority disposed of many old and out-dated police stations which were frankly no longer fit for purpose. However, instead of investing in new, state-of-the-art facilities, they have taken a short-term fix in many cases by moving into borough and district councils’ offices. This approach has improved the public link between police and local authorities, provides the public with more user-friendly access to police officers and saves significant running costs for the old stations.

However, putting police officers in the same office as the local council does not necessarily mean they will work more closely together. Nor does it provide a long term solution to the need for the police to have physical locations and adequate facilities located within the local communities they serve, particularly since some of these local authorities are already reviewing their own occupancy of their present offices, and the police could be looking for new premises again within months or just a few years.

As Police & Crime Commissioner, Nick O’Shea will develop a long-term plan to safeguard the provision of cost-effective policing for Surrey into the middle of the century, including the use of up-to-date technologies and equipment, with appropriate modern facilities and premises.

Nick O’Shea – personal background

Nick’s father and grandfather served in Surrey Police and a family member is still a serving officer. His family has also been involved in the licenced trade across the county and as a result he has lived in more than a dozen towns and villages across Surrey. He has been married for 32 years and lives in Dorking with his wife and two adult sons, and where he served for 8 years as a Mole Valley District councillor.

Nick’s family has lived in Surrey for over a century, his Irish paternal grandfather married into a local family when stationed in Caterham during the First World War, while his maternal grandfather was a shoemaker who founded a chain of shops in the Sutton and Banstead area. Nick has lived in many parts of the county as his family moved from Ripley to Capel, then Brockham, Cheam, Merrow, Woking, Old Woking, Esher, Abinger Hammer, Betchworth, Beare Green and finally to Dorking.
Nick graduated with a degree in Maths and Chemistry from King’s College London in 1976 and went into industry where he started work as a salesman; moving into marketing, research, finance, and finally management. He qualified as a Management Accountant while working with Procter & Gamble in the 1980s.
He has recently been working with the NHS, particularly in Surrey, to improve their service delivery and cost effectiveness principally for the NHS dental service. At present he is a director of a number of small businesses as well as being a non-executive director of a quoted PLC.

Nick was elected to Mole Valley District Council in May 1991 and re-elected in 1995. During his term of office he was vice chair of the Planning & Development Control and Policy & Finance committees and chair of the Budget committee and DLO board. He also served as both Deputy and then Leader of the Liberal Democrats’ council group.
Nick and his chef wife Marion have lived with their family in Dorking for over 35 years. They enjoy travelling, speak several languages, and until recently were closely involved with running Westcott Sports and Cricket Club, where Nick is now a Vice President.