Gender Male
Mike Barton joined Lancashire Constabulary in 1980 and in 2008 he joined Durham Constabulary as assistant chief constable. He was promoted to deputy chief constable and then chief constable in February 2013.
Barton has led new ways of tackling organised criminals with local beat officers and PCSOs by challenging traditional ways of policing and
encouraging paradigm shifts. Durham is now recognised as a leading force in tackling organised crime and was the only force graded outstanding for investigating crime in the recent HMIC PEEL inspections. He has long been a keen exponent of problem-orientated policing and integrated offender management, including restorative justice, and has successfully embedded these concepts in Lancashire and Durham.
Barton is the National Policing Lead for the portfolios of intelligence and troubled families and is also National Policing Lead for PND (Police National Database) and HOLMES (Home Office Large Major Enquiry System) and chairs the Operational Requirements Board (ORB), which is designed to ensure national operational software is much better integrated in the future to reduce cost and improve effectiveness. The development of national standards is integral to this.
