Laurence Taylor and Rachel Williams appointed as Assistant Commissioners

The Met has appointed Laurence Taylor and Rachel Williams as Assistant Commissioners.

Assistant Commissioner Taylor, who has been temporarily occupying the post of Assistant Commissioner for Professionalism, has been permanently appointed as Assistant Commissioner for Specialist Operations.

Assistant Commissioner Williams has been serving temporarily as the Assistant Commissioner for Trust and Legitimacy. She has been permanently appointed as Assistant Commissioner for Professionalism.

Laurence and Rachel will move into their new roles in July.

Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said: “I am very pleased to welcome both Laurence and Rachel into their new permanent Assistant Commissioner positions.

“They bring a wealth of experience, having served at forces across the country before coming to the Met. Here, they have both been pivotal part of our senior leadership team, with Laurence driving forward changes in frontline policing and Rachel improving our culture so we can increase public trust in the Met.

“I wish them both the best of luck in their new roles and look forward to working closely with them as they help us deliver a New Met for London.”

Bios

AC Taylor joined policing in 1996 as a constable with Sussex Police.

Working hard to become an inspector in just eight years, his work at the beginning of his career spanned patrolling the neighbourhoods of East Sussex to leading on 24/7 response policing in central Brighton – one the UK’s busiest cities.

His final position at Sussex Police was Deputy Chief Constable, where he managed Local Policing, Operations and Specialist Crime Command.

From there, he joined the Met in 2018 as Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Uniformed Operations. In this role AC Taylor was responsible for more than 8,000 officers and staff, delivering specialist policing and pan-London services, including firearms, roads policing and safer transport teams, and taskforce. He was critical in the Met’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as some of the city’s most challenging political moments in modern history.

Before his most recent post, AC Taylor was Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Frontline Policing – Local Policing from March 2021 to February 2023. Under his leadership, the number of wanted offenders outstanding reduced by 20 per cent and several new initiatives were established, including community mental health projects and town centre teams.

AC Taylor then served as DAC Specialist Operations from February 2023 until April 2024 when he took over the role of Temporary Assistant Commissioner for Professionalism.

Rachel had an impressive career at Avon and Somerset Police and worked her way up the ranks to T/Assistant Chief Constable Crime and Operations where she led on several areas including crime and investigations, intelligence and covert work.

She then moved to the Met in 2020 and joined as Commander Intelligence and Covert Policing. Rachel oversaw 2,000 staff and officers leading on covert, sensitive and frontline intelligence work.

Following this role, Rachel moved on to become Commander Rebuilding Trust / Serious Violence where she focused on improving public confidence in the Met and driving down violence across the city.

In November 2022 she moved to Gwent Police as Deputy Chief Constable, where she was critical in the protection of some of the most diverse and vulnerable communities in Wales.

Rejoining the Met in 2024, Rachel returned to occupy the role of Temporary Assistant Commissioner for Trust and Legitimacy, helping deliver high standards and professionalism – a key pillar in the Met’s New Met for London strategy.

During this time AC Williams was also head of the Met’s Culture, Diversity and Inclusion directorate, chair of the CD&I group and led on the force’s culture programme.