Former Nottingham Police Chief Steps Down from Serious Cases Role Following Family Criticism
The former police chief who led Nottinghamshire Police during the devastating 2023 attacks has withdrawn from a new position reviewing serious criminal cases after facing significant backlash from victims' families. Kate Meynell will no longer assume the role as head of the East Midlands Special Operations Unit's regional review unit, a decision that families of those killed have welcomed as "common sense prevailing."
Background of the Nottingham Attacks and Police Failures
Ms Meynell served as chief constable of Nottinghamshire Police when Valdo Calocane, a paranoid schizophrenic, carried out a series of violent attacks in June 2023. The tragedy began in the early hours of June 13th when Calocane fatally stabbed University of Nottingham students Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both aged 19, as they returned to their student accommodation. More than an hour later, he attacked and killed 65-year-old school caretaker Ian Coates, stealing his van and using it to run over three pedestrians.
During the ongoing Nottingham Inquiry, Meynell admitted to "unacceptable" failures in her force's response to Calocane's crimes. She revealed that an arrest warrant for Calocane issued in September 2022 had been sent to an inbox that was not regularly monitored, allowing him to remain at large. Additionally, she acknowledged that her complaint to the press regulator about the Nottingham Post's coverage of a "non-reportable" briefing—and the failure to inform victims' families about this complaint—represented a significant mistake.
Controversial Appointment and Subsequent Withdrawal
Following her announced retirement from Nottinghamshire Police due to a cancer diagnosis, it emerged that Meynell planned to take up a new position as head of EMSOU's regional review unit starting April 6th. This unit, staffed by officers from five East Midlands police forces, specializes in tackling serious, organized, and violent crime across the region. Its review team examines major inquiries, critical incidents, and other significant investigations.
In her witness statement to the inquiry, Meynell expressed her desire to "continue working" in a role with "significantly less responsibility" than that of a chief constable. However, the victims' families strongly criticized this appointment, with Dr. Sanjoy Kumar, father of Grace O'Malley-Kumar, describing it as "incompetent."
EMSOU has now confirmed that Meynell will not be taking up the position, stating that the role had been advertised between October and November 2025, followed by a standard recruitment process. Meynell was successful in securing the position after an interview on January 6th, 2026, but has since decided against accepting it.
Family Reactions and Broader Implications
Emma Webber, mother of murdered Barnaby Webber, responded to the news by stating, "It appears to us that common sense has prevailed." However, she emphasized that the situation "raises serious questions about how this appointment was made in the first place." Webber noted that Meynell had already admitted to fundamental failings in handling the Nottingham attacks investigation, making her appointment to oversee reviews of serious cases "deeply concerning to families."
Webber added, "The fact that this appointment has now unravelled only adds to a growing sense of confusion and lack of proper judgment at the highest levels. Families like ours are entitled to have confidence in the people leading these processes. That confidence has been undermined, first by the decision to appoint, and now by the decision not to proceed."
She called for "clear answers as to how this situation was allowed to happen" and emphasized the need for a process that is "credible, transparent, and commands the confidence of the families it is meant to serve." This development follows the controversial sentencing of Valdo Calocane, who was detained indefinitely in a high-security hospital instead of prison after prosecutors accepted his not guilty pleas to murder on grounds of diminished responsibility in January 2024—a decision that angered victims' families who had been told he would be imprisoned.
