PDS confirms ‘strategic restructuring’ with sequence of interim senior management hires
The Police Digital Service (PDS) has accomplished a “strategic restructuring” of its senior management group, greater than a 12 months after two of its workers had been arrested for suspected bribery, fraud and misconduct in a public workplace.
The 2 PDS workers had been arrested, interviewed and bailed by Metropolis of London Police in July 2024, and since then, the organisation’s senior management group has undergone an entire revamp.
Inside two weeks of the information of the arrests breaking, Laptop Weekly confirmed that PDS chief government Ian Bell had resigned from his submit, earlier than later being changed by interim CEO Tony Eastaugh in August 2024.
In keeping with the PDS web site, Eastaugh’s appointment has now been made everlasting, and the senior management group seems to have been streamlined, with fewer roles now listed, and is now staffed with interim leaders. They embrace Ed Preece, who served as PDS’s director of governance and efficiency between September and February 2025, earlier than taking up the function of interim chief working officer.
As beforehand reported by Laptop Weekly, the organisation’s chief info safety officer (CISO), Jason Corbishley, departed PDS in April 2025 to take up a place within the non-public sector as a consulting director at Palo Alto Networks Unit 42. He has since been changed by interim CISO Chris Cope.
The next month, in April 2025, the corporate’s chief monetary officer, Catherine Wilmot, departed PDS, earlier than being changed by Lisa Cranston.
The web site additionally lists David Bowen as interim deputy CEO and ex-Authorities Digital Service human assets head Greg Hobbs as interim chief individuals officer. Each look like new roles at PDS.
When requested by Laptop Weekly in regards to the raft of interim senior management appointments, a PDS spokesperson mentioned they had been geared in direction of aiding the organisation with reaching its push to digitally remodel UK policing.
“The Police Digital Service has made appointments to its government group over the previous 12 months to strengthen its management and ship on the bold targets of the Nationwide Policing Digital Technique,” mentioned the spokesperson, in an announcement.
“The appointments are designed to herald recent experience and views to raised handle the advanced challenges going through trendy policing,” they added. “These people carry in depth expertise essential for overseeing the PDS’s company technique and guaranteeing efficient collaboration with police forces and key companions.
“This strategic restructuring ensures the organisation can ship on its mission to assist policing shield the general public in an evolving digital world.”
‘Reset programme’
As confirmed in a earlier assertion to Laptop Weekly, attributed to Eastaugh, within the wake of the July 2024 arrests at PDS, the organisation set a couple of “important reset programme” that concluded on the finish of final 12 months.
As outlined in Eastaugh’s assertion, the reset paved the best way for PDS to introduce a “new working mannequin and an bold strategic supply plan to assist policing and public security”, whereas permitting PDS to deal with delivering “stay providers at larger velocity, scale and effectivity”.
In the meantime, and on the time of writing, the prison investigation involving the 2 unnamed PDS workers remains to be ongoing, as confirmed to Laptop Weekly by Metropolis of London Police.
PDS, included in June 2012, is assessed as a non-public firm with no shareholders, and its actions are funded by the House Workplace and the broader policing sector.
