HE HAS steadily climbed the ranks to become Hull's top police officer.
Chief Superintendent Scott Young became one of few officers to have held every police rank in the city when he was appointed divisional commander last month.
He may now be the last holder of the job, after Humberside Police chief constable Justine Curran announced the force would no longer be divided by geographic areas.
Instead, it will be split into five functional areas, each headed by a chief superintendent. At present, none of those have been assigned to Chief Supt Young, although three will be run by officers that could retire at any time.
However, he says he is concentrating on his current role rather than any future plans.
"I am relishing the challenge, having taken the reins at a time when there is significant change for the force," he said.
"This is a challenging time because of the economic impact and I am also preparing my officers, partners and the community for a transition."
One of the biggest challenges he is facing is rising crime in the city, which has gone up for the first time in ten years. Before becoming divisional commander, he was head of CID for Hull and responsible for crime figures.
However, the latest numbers show overall crime went up by 11.1 per cent between April last year and March this year.
"Hull is a challenging place to work," he said.
"We have the economic demands of the force as well as challenging social and welfare issues in the city.
"My priority this year is clearly to reduce crime, which I hope to do by reducing reoffending and addressing those who commit the most crime.
"I also want to see us improving the quality of service for our victims, ensuring they have a voice.
"We are using new powers, such as community resolutions, to ensure there is swifter justice on the streets and make sure the punishment absolutely fits the crime."
Chief Supt Young joined the force in 1994 as a constable working between Hull and the East Riding, before becoming a detective in the city, where he rose through every rank.
Much of his 20-year career has been spent in CID, although there have also been stints in intelligence and neighbourhood policing.
It is unclear what his next move will be after the three geographical areas currently dividing the force are merged.
Chief Constable Curran has decided to scrap the divisions as part of her Change programme, which aims to save £30m over the next five years. As part of the changes, 200 officers and up to 600 staff will leave the force.
However, Chief Supt Young does not think the change will have a negative impact on the city, and could potentially see more officers coming to Hull.
The city accounts for almost half of all crime recorded in Humberside Police.
"Moving away from geographical boundaries will allow the force to strip away the invisible barriers to the way we continue to police," he says.
"Our resources can be more effectively placed where there is the greatest demand.
"The opportunity to move away from territorial policing will also allow the right resources to be sent the first time which offers a better quality of service to the public and a more efficient system.
"Therefore, it is absolutely the right thing to do. This is a real opportunity regardless of the economic state to move Humberside Police forward to a more effective service.
"I don't have a crystal ball, but I don't anticipate a reduced service at all."
At the same time, he believes the city's success in securing the Siemens wind turbine factory and UK City of Culture 2017 status could lead to falling crime rates.
"We are in a good place," said Chief Supt Young.
"It is an exciting time to be in Hull at the moment and I absolutely feel we can achieve great things over the next few years."
Judi Heaton: 'Chance to take a hard look at improvements'
IN A year's time, it will be all change for Chief Superintendent Judi Heaton.
Currently in charge of policing the East Riding, she will become head of the communities command for the entire force when the geographical divisions are scrapped next year.
Her role will include managing neighbourhood policing teams, crime prevention work, customer service and the force's "triage" schemes.
"It is a vast mix of functions," said Chief Supt Heaton.
"I want to focus not just on what we do but how we do it. We have got shrinking budgets and we need to get better.
"Sometimes it is things that are free and don't take much time that can make a big difference to people.
"It is about looking at what we do already, looking for improvements and organising ourselves."
Part of Chief Supt Heaton's role could involve people making appointments to see police officers, rather than waiting for them at home.
"Most people don't need us immediately," she said.
"It is thinking about how we see people and when. It should be better because it will be more bespoke."
Chief Supt Heaton said she believes splitting the force into functional areas rather than geographical areas will make it more efficient.
"The fact we have to save a lot of money is not the only reason we are doing this, but it has given us the opportunity to take a good, hard look at ourselves and how we can do things better."
