He was born in the West Midlands and he has worked in the area all of his adult life. He joined the West Midlands Police as a Cadet in 1974 and joined the service as a constable in 1976. He was initially posted to Brierley Hill Police Station and remained there for a number of years. During that time he performed duties as a uniformed front line officer on a shift and as a local community beat officer. He served as a Dog Handler, Court file preparation Officer and as a local Detective on the CID.