New CEO for Civil Nuclear Police Federation

Chief Inspector Colin Longstaff has been appointed as the new CEO of the Civil Nuclear Police Federation. He will take over from Chief Inspector Gary Thwaite in January.

 Having previously served in the RAF and worked for the prison service, Colin Longstaff joined the UK Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary – the forerunner of the Civil Nuclear Constabulary – in February 2001. He was stationed at Sellafield, where he worked as an Authorised Firearms Officer and dog handler before transferring to Heysham OPU in 2006.

 A promotion to sergeant followed, and Colin transferred back to Sellafield in 2011 as a shift Inspector. Two years after that, he was promoted to Chief Inspector Operations. Colin spent several years at Heysham and Hartlepool before becoming the Senior Operational Lead of the Mission Programme in 2021. He has been involved in introducing body-worn video, unmanned aerial vehicles and counter-unmanned aerial vehicles, Airbox, and the operational deployment of Vessel Protection Officers on cross-channel ferries. 

Colin has been a Federation Rep since 2015 and was appointed to the Executive Board in 2023. 

Colin said about his new role, “I am looking forward to leading the Federation. Having been a Federation rep and a manager within CNC for several years, I have been on both sides of the negotiating table. I will work hard to ensure our member's voices are heard. 

“Gary has had a very difficult tenure, not least of all because of Covid and the long-standing pensions issues. He has done the hard yards, and I would like to thank him for his commitment and dedication to the Federation.” 

Gary Thwaite has been the CEO of the Civil Nuclear Police Federation since 2019, having previously been the Sellafield Federation Unit Chair for four years. 

Gary announced his intention to stand down in October, saying: “I had long been driven by a desire to support people through difficult times. The roles of both Chair and CEO enabled me to continue doing that but on a bigger scale. 

“It has been a great privilege to have led the Federation and work alongside the force through some good, but also some very challenging, times. It’s a testament to our small team that we have collectively worked through what has arguably been the most difficult period policing has faced for decades: politics, a pandemic, and public inquiries, to name but a few. 

“I was advised by my predecessor that ‘your job is to leave it in a better place than when you received it’, and I am content that’s the position we are in. There will always be more work to do, but the time is right for me to pass on the Federation baton.” 

Gary will return to a policing role within the Civil Nuclear Constabulary in January. He is currently working alongside Colin Longstaff to ensure an effective handover of the CEO role.