FOI 25/26 – 054: Senior Staff who have had oversight of Op Magnolia

Freedom of Information request

Operation Magnolia began in early 2014 and is still ongoing. Under section 1(1) of FOIA I request all the recorded information that you hold, in all formats and all departments, regarding the names of all Chief Constables, all Duty and/or Assistant Chief Constable and all Senior investigating Officers that have had oversight of this operation since it began.

I am aware that the Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner’s office maintains official records of senior appointments.

Further clarification was requested and received on the 5^th March 2026, outlined below:  

My original request sought the names of all Chief Constables, Assistant Chief Constables (or Duty ACCs), and Senior Investigating Officers who have had “oversight” of this operation since it began in early 2014. 

I understand that the term “oversight” can be broad. To assist you in locating the information, I am happy to clarify the specific meaning of this term in the context of this request. I am referring to individuals who have held strategic or operational command responsibility for the investigation. 

Based on the responsibilities outlined for these roles in investigations of this nature—specifically referencing findings from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) report on Operation Magnolia—I am seeking the names of the individuals who fulfilled the following functions between 2014 and the present: 

• Chief Constable: The individual ultimately accountable for the force’s conduct and responsible for setting the strategic direction and resources for major operations. 
• Assistant Chief Constable (ACC): The senior officer with portfolio responsibility for Operations (or Crime), tasked with reviewing the investigation’s scope and parameters and ensuring it had the necessary strategic direction and resources. This refers to the individual formally accountable for the operation’s conduct to the Chief Constable. 
• Senior Investigating Officer (SIO): The officer with direct, day-to-day operational command of the investigation, responsible for making critical decisions on lines of enquiry, resource management, and maintaining the policy file. 

To be clear, I am requesting the names of the individuals who held these specific responsibilities for Operation Magnolia, along with the dates they held them.

Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner response

As per Section 1(1) of the Freedom of Information Act, the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner does hold some of the information you request. Each point has been responded to separately as below: 

For clarity, I would just like to confirm that the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner only maintains official records of Chief Constable appointments. 

Please see the table below listing the names of Chief Constables since 2014 to present.  

Regarding the names of ACCs who have had oversight of Operation Magnolia since 2014. The remaining information is not held by this office. 

ACC Orchard – 2020 

ACC Baker – 2023 

ACC Fox – 2025 

Regarding the names of SIOs who have had oversight of Operation Magnolia since 2014. The remaining information is not held by this office. 

SIO Chief Inspector Robinson – 2020 

SIO Chief Inspector Chatterton – 2025