Staffordshire Police's chief constable, Chris Noble, has been suspended while an independent investigation into "allegations about his conduct" takes place.

The Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime, Ben Adams, confirmed he had suspended the chief constable today, which follows a referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct made last year.

The investigation into the referral is said to be "ongoing" and now "additional allegations" have led to Mr Noble being suspended today (1 August) as they met "the threshold for suspension".

The allegations are not said to be work-related and predate Mr Noble's time with Staffordshire Police and work is now underway to find a temporary chief constable for the force.

The Staffordshire commissioner, Mr Adams, said: "Public confidence in the Police service is vital so all allegations of misconduct must be fully and independently investigated.

"In the interests of the public, Staffordshire Police and the chief constable himself, I have decided to suspend Mr Noble from his role pending the outcome of the IOPC's investigation.

"Suspension is a neutral act, to enable an independent and thorough investigation to take place. It has no bearing on any indication of guilt and should not be seen as such."

Chief constable Noble has been a police officer for more than 26 years, joining the Royal Ulster Constabulary after he graduated from Queens University Belfast with an honours degree in Law.

Mr Noble has worked in a variety of roles across policing and has held a number of key leadership positions in the Police Service of Northern Ireland across local policing, professional standards, criminal justice and headquarters commands

He moved to Humberside Police in 2017 to become assistant chief constable before being appointed as chief constable for Staffordshire Police in December 2021.

Mr Adams added: "I know that this announcement will come as a shock to many across Staffordshire, especially our hard-working officers and staff, but it is right that allegations of this serious nature are dealt with consistently and investigated properly and thoroughly.

"I continue to be focused on the communities of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, and ensuring that Staffordshire Police continues to keep our residents safe, protect the vulnerable, and prevent and detect crime and anti-social behaviour.

"My team is now working to identify a temporary chief constable.

"As this is an ongoing investigation by the IOPC, I will not be commenting further."