DCC Simon Megicks – Senior Responsible Officer for the NPCC’s Digital Public Contact Programme

Simon Megicks is the Senior Responsible Officer for the NPCC’s Digital Public Contact programme, which is enhancing the public’s access to policing through a variety of digital channels such as Single Online Home, MyPolice Portal, Social Media and the Digital Youth Engagement programme.  Simon’s day job is Deputy Chief Constable of Norfolk Constabulary where he has been since the rank of Assistant Chief Constable, having also served in Hertfordshire Police and Cambridgeshire. Simon has a degree in Physics, a Masters in Police Leadership and is a graduate of the University of Cambridge’s Masters programme in Applied Criminology and Police Management.

ACC Catherine Akehurst – NPCC Lead for Contact Management

Catherine became national lead for Contact Management in the summer of 2023 and as part of this role also chairs the National 999/111 Liaison committee which brings together all of the emergency services. She is an ACC at Hertfordshire Constabulary where she is the lead for Strategy and Prevention having transferred back to the force from Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary. Catherine previously served in Hertfordshire in all ranks from PC to temporary Assistant Chief Constable. Her force portfolio covers the Force Communications Room (FCR), Operations, Prevention, and Strategy, Performance and Transformation. She is also the lead for the Police Race Action Plan, the Eastern Region chief officer lead for Prevention and the deputy chair of Hertfordshire’s Local Resilience Forum.

Simon Hall – Chair of the techUK Justice and Emergency Service Interoperability Forum

Simon is the Chair of the techUK Justice and Emergency Service Interoperability Forum (JESIF), a role he took on to expand the work of the techUK Interoperability in Police Working Group. ​ He is the founder and CEO of Coeus Software, which developed PoliceBox®, a no-code, SaaS-based digital enablement platform for frontline policing. ​ With over 40 years of experience in technology, Simon has navigated the challenges of building solutions and managing technological obsolescence. ​ He is a strong advocate for interoperability and seamless system integration, contributing several thought leadership pieces on the subject. ​ Simon also serves on the techUK Justice and Emergency Services JES Management Committee and the Procurement sub-group. ​