12/02/2026
Police Oracle
After stints in Merseyside, Cheshire and Cumbria, Darren Martland was a univeristy lecturer before coming out of retirement and rejoining his last force in July 2023.
After a brief retirement from policing, T/CC Martland lectured to undergraduates studying for a BSc. in Professional Policing and returned to Cumbria in July 2023 as the Deputy Chief Constable.
He started his policing career in Merseyside Police in 1990, working in a number of uniform operational roles in both Merseyside and Cheshire Constabulary.
He completed the Strategic Command Course in 2013 and became a qualified (gold) public order and Strategic Firearms Commander (SFC), before transferring to Cumbria Constabulary in 2015. He was responsible for all aspects of operational policing and took command of the partnership response to the flooding in Cumbria in December 2015 (Storm Desmond).
He transferred to Cheshire Constabulary in 2017 and, in 2019, was appointed Chief Constable. He was also the national lead for pre-charge bail, and co-ordinated the policing response to a significant change in legislation.
PFCC Allen said: “Cumbria is one of the safest counties in the UK. However, due to its size and geography, it comes with a distinctly unique set of challenges. As a result, the Chief Constable must be innovative and dynamic.
The next stage in the process is that, as required by statutory regulations, the Police, Fire and Crime Panel will hold a confirmatory hearing on 27 February to assess Darren Martland’s suitability for the role of Chief Constable. Following that the Panel will make a recommendation to the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner about whether the appointment should be confirmed.