THE most senior female police officer in Durham has taken over at the helm of the force in the south of the county.

Chief superintendent Carole Thompson is now commander for one of the biggest geographic policing areas in the country.

Her office is based in Darlington, but the diverse patch covers the southern part of the country stretching from Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Cleveland.

A range of initiatives, which have been put in place to combat crime, have started to pay dividends.

Offending has dropped 8.8 per cent during the past five months compared to the same period last year. Significant decreases have been recorded in Darlington and Spennymoor.

Chief Supt Thompson said: "A lot of hard work has been done by the staff here over the past few years to achieve the results we are getting.

"Significant improvements have been made but there will be no sitting back on our laurels."

The promotion represents a meteoric rise for Chief Supt Thompson, who as a child was advised to become a police officer by her great grandmother. She said she would never forget the words of advice she was given.

She added: "I joined the police because I thought it was a job where I would get plenty of variety and I would be working with communities.

"It was something where I felt I could make a difference. It has been everything as I expected, but the highlight is the job I have now. It really is a dream come true."

Chief Supt Thompson said her experience in operational policing, which has seen her work at almost every main police station in the county, will be used to good effect.

And despite the advances already being made, she said she would endeavour to further improve the force's record.

She added: "Vehicle crime, violence, burglaries and rowdy, nuisance behaviour will be concentrated on.

"Reductions in crime don't come easy, but, working with our partners and drawing on the expertise we have, we will be doing our very best to deliver and improve the quality of life for our communities."