Continuity and authenticity are priorities for new chair Delme

13 December 2024

“I want to be an authentic leader, using the knowledge I have in policing to create a better workforce for our members,” says the new chair of Dyfed Powys Police Federation

Having been deputy chair for five years, Delme Rees stepped into the chair’s role this summer.

“I’ve always worked in frontline roles working shifts to deliver response policing, so adjusting to a nine-to-five job was definitely a challenge when I first became a full-time Fed rep,” said Delme, 49, who has been a police officer for 23 years.

While Delme grew up in Carmarthen, he started his career with Derbyshire Constabulary, working in IT. At the time, his dad was a Dyfed Powys PC and did not advocate policing as a career, having seen it change much as it did in his 25 plus years’ service. However, the variety of roles, opportunities and the pension scheme policing offered did appeal.

Shift

Delme transferred into the Force shortly after his dad retired and was initially posted to Lampeter. He recalled arriving for his first shift with an ‘A to Z for Ceredigion’ and finding a locked police station with no one there to let him in. Sitting in the car park was the police response vehicle, a Bedford Rascal van.

As well as the response role, Delme was also a neighbourhood officer for a couple of years, before being promoted to sergeant, serving 10 years in Ceredigion in response and custody, and neighbourhood in Lampeter and Aberystwyth before being promoted to inspector in 2017.

Throughout this time, he was, and still is, a PSU and CBRN officer, something he recommends to officers seeking to add skills to their portfolio. Along with the conflict resolution skills and increased legislative knowledge the roles bring, they also provide opportunities to meet and work with colleagues from across the Force in training and on mutual aid deployments, such as the Olympics, EUFA Championship and local and national disorder.

Multiple roles

From 2020, Delme worked in the FCC as a Force Incident Manager (FIM).

“Dyfed Powys Police might cover a large area, but we’re a relatively small force. I think a lot of people know my name, if not my face,” continued Delme, who admitted that having experience across multiple roles ‘definitely helps’ in his job as chair.

His involvement with the Federation began around seven years ago, as a workplace representative. He went on to become deputy chair, along with being the health and safety lead, before moving into the chair position when his predecessor, Gareth Jones, retired. 

Delme said: “I enjoy the inspector rank and the variety of roles that you can do in it, and I don’t see myself wanting to go for promotion again. It’s important to keep moving in your career so it doesn’t become stale and you can move forward. I anticipated the opportunity of becoming chair and believe that, with the particular skills I have acquired over a long career, it is the right time for me to take it on.

New federation chair Delme Rees.

“I’m really passionate about improving the day-to-day working environment for officers.”

He admits that although the shift patterns, work-life balance, training, vehicles and equipment have all improved during his career, the importance of ensuring these areas remain a focus for the Federation and the Force to continuously deliver on.  

While there has been a period of continuous change in the Force, Delme says he has also seen a lot of change in the Federation, both nationally and locally in the last seven years.

“Speaking for the branch, it is really positive in how I have seen it develop and I’m keen to ensure this continues along with maintaining the high level of support to those colleagues that need it most,” he explains, adding that he is determined to provide resilience within the Federation.

He explained: “I appreciate the Federation elections are fast approaching but once they’re complete - and should I still be chair - I want to ensure that we retain as much as possible the appropriate level of knowledge and experience that is only gained first hand by the representatives who deal with the welfare, advice and misconduct cases on a daily basis.

Representative

“With Gareth retiring from the chair position and now Roger Webb as branch secretary, along with other work-based reps either retiring or standing down in December as they retire soon after, there’s definitely an element of uncertainty, I think, from our members. I will expect that a number of our current workplace representatives will be re-elected by the members off the back of their good work and direct support over the last three years.

“But I would like to highlight that any Federation member can stand to be a representative and, while we have inspector, sergeant and PC representation in areas from response, CIH, custody, JFU, L & D and all divisions including HQ, I would like to see some CID, RPU and NPT representation as well as those from under-represented groups put themselves forward when the election process opens right at the end of December. If anyone would like more information on what the role of a Federation work-based representative entails please get in touch with me directly or anyone of the reps already out there. Details are available on our website.

In addition, Delme is keen to combat the constant negativity surrounding policing and hopes to work with Dyfed Powys Police to increase morale within the Force.

He concluded: “We can’t do much to influence the continuous impact of negative stories or articles that are presented on social media or official media streams whose primary motive is to generate views. The good and positive work done daily far outweighs the negative but is never reported on. We can try to improve pay and working conditions, reduce the administrative bureaucracy and increase support available to members both on a national and Force level.”

READ MORE: Winter magazine out now.