Board Members
Name: John Wiseman (Chair of the Dorset Criminal Justice Board)
Position: Chief Officer, Dorset Probation Service
Details: John Wiseman became Chief Officer of Dorset Probation in August 2007, having been an Assistant Chief Officer in Avon and Somerset for the previous seven years. John first qualified as a Probation Officer in 1981 and has since worked in a variety of roles including work in a Probation hostel in Devon, a Probation Officer in Gloucestershire and a Senior Probation Officer in HM Prison Gloucester. John spent five years working as a practitioner and a manager in the Auckland area of New Zealand. John was awarded the Master of Studies in Criminology, Penology and Management by the Institute of Criminology at Cambridge University.
Name: Martin Baker QPM
Position: Chief Constable
Details: Martin Baker is married and has three daughters. Martin joined the Metropolitan Police in June 1975, serving initially in South-East London, both as a uniform and detective Constable. In 1979 he was appointed to the Anti-Terrorist Branch at New Scotland Yard and over the subsequent decade was involved in the investigation of numerous terrorist crimes in London and elsewhere.1988 saw a change of career path when he transferred to the West Mercia Constabulary, where he served in a variety of uniform operational roles across the Force area, ultimately as a Chief Inspector at Shrewsbury. In 1997 he transferred on promotion to Gwent Police, serving in both uniform and in CID as a Superintendent before his promotion to Chief Superintendent, when he became Divisional Commander in Newport. Following successful completion of the 2001 Strategic Command Course, from which he graduated with a coveted Grade 1 pass, Mr Baker was appointed Assistant Chief Constable (Operations) for the Gloucestershire Constabulary. There he commanded a number of particularly notable operations including the policing of RAF Fairford during the activation of the base for military operations during the 2003 Iraq war. This operation necessitated the largest national mobilisation of police resources in more than a decade. Mr Baker was subsequently appointed Deputy Chief Constable of the Gloucestershire Constabulary before being appointed Chief Constable of Dorset Police on 1 January 2005.Since 2001 Martin has led work for ACPO ( Association of Chief Police Officers) on serious and organised crime, which has included the establishment of Regional Intelligence Units across England & Wales. He has been appointed by Ministers to chair an Organised Crime Partnership Board to further develop collaborative capacity and capability between the major UK law enforcement agencies. Mr Baker holds a B.Sc.(Hons) degree in Policing and Police Studies from the University of Portsmouth, an M.B.A. (Public Service) from Birmingham University and a Diploma in Applied Criminology (with distinction) from the University of Cambridge. In 2007 he was awarded the Diploma in Company Direction by the Institute of Directors. He has completed the National School of Government’s Top Management Programme and is an alumnus of the Windsor Leadership Trust’s Established Strategic Leaders Programme.
Name: Kate Brown
Position: Chief Crown Prosecutor
Details: Kate Brown was educated at the Frensham Heights and York University where she read politics, graduating in 1990. She then studied at The College of Law in York, undertook a training contract in private practice in North London and was admitted as a solicitor in 1994. She began prosecuting for the CPS in 1994 in Shropshire, moving to Wiltshire, Hampshire and Dorset. Since joining the CPS, she has held various positions before becoming the District Crown Prosecutor for South East Hampshire in 2004 and heading up one of the Higher Court Advocate pathfinders in Portsmouth. In November 2006 she was appointed as the Temporary Chief Crown Prosecutor for Dorset and was permanently appointed to that role in September 2007. Kate has a keen interest in the experience of victims and witnesses in the criminal justice system and takes the lead for the Local Criminal Justice Board on Victim and Witness issues. She takes a lead nationally for the CPS on Human Rights Issues.
Name: Serena Watts
Position: Governor, HM Prison Dorchester
Details: Serena joined Middlesex Probation Service in 1994, working at Feltham Probation Office. In 1990 she was promoted to Senior Probation Officer and took over a hostel in Finchley for high tariff offenders before becoming Head of Probation at HM Young Offenders Institution, Feltham. In October 1999 Serena joined the Prison Service on the fast track system and was posted to HM Prison Wandsworth in her first officer placement. In March 2000 she joined HM Prison Erlestoke as Head of Prisoner Development and Programmes and in 2002 was promoted to Head of Residence. In December 2003 Serena was appointed Deputy Governor of HM Prison Shepton Mallet and a year later became Deputy Governor at HM Prison Bristol. Serena was appointed Governor of HM Prison Dartmoor in June 2005 and became Governor of HM Prison Dorchester in January 2009.
Name: Clive Hawkins
Position: Manager, Dorset Youth Offending Team
Details: Clive Hawkins left Dorset at 18 to take a Law Degree in Bristol and then continued to migrate north working in the 1980's as a Probation Officer in Derbyshire and Greater Manchester. In the 1990's he worked as a manager in a number of settings in Greater Manchester Probation Service. At the end of 1999 he returned to Dorset when he was appointed to set up the Dorset Youth Offending Team. The YOT "went live" in April 2000 and Clive has remained the Manager, overseeing the steady development of the team.
Name: Cheif Superintendent Gill Donnell MBE
Position: Criminal Justice Divisional Commander
Details :Gill Donnell has been the Commander of the Criminal Justice Division since June 2005, having previously worked as Custody Manager and Judicial Services Manager. Much of her police career has been spent within the CID, with Gill assisting in the setting up of the Police Child Protection Unit as well as creating the first Domestic Violence Unit in 1995. Gill sits on the National Committee for the British Association for Women in Policing, has a keen interest in issues affecting victims and witnesses, and is Chair of Relate Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch. In June 2009 she was honoured by Her Majesty The Queen in her Birthday Honours List and created a Member of the British Empire for her 'services to policing', particularly for advancing the role of women in policing.
Name: Simon Townley
Position: Area Director HMCS
Details: Simon Townley took up the post as Area Director for Dorset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Wiltshire in June 2009 following a restructuring exercise that saw HMCS South West Region reduce from four to two areas. He joined the SW regional team in May 2007 after a short secondment to HMCS Headquarters where he worked on a range of projects including a review of the implementation of the computorised listing system for civil courts.