Chief superintendent

Chief superintendent is a senior rank in police forces organised on the British model.

United Kingdom

In the British police, a chief superintendent (Ch Supt; or colloquially "chief super") is senior to a superintendent and junior to an assistant chief constable (or a commander in the Metropolitan Police or City of London Police).

The highest rank below Chief Officer level, chief superintendents were first introduced into the Metropolitan Police in 1949, when superintendents were regraded to the new rank, and have since been adopted in all British police forces. However, the rank had been used previously to this in some forces in certain circumstances. For example, in 1920 the deputy head of Shropshire Constabulary bore the official title of "chief superintendent and deputy chief constable" and in 1927 Lancashire Constabulary had two chief superintendents who were junior to the assistant chief constable.

Between 1949 and 1968, chief superintendent was junior to deputy commander in the Metropolitan Police, and between 1953 and 1974 it was immediately senior to superintendent grade I.