Birthday Honours 2019
Sara Joanne Thornton DBE
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)
lately Chief Constable
Organisation: Thames Valley Police
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire · 2019
“For services to Policing.”
Commander of the Order of the British Empire · 2011
“Chief Constable, Thames Valley Police. For services to the Police.”
Timeline
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
Chief Constable, Thames Valley Police. For services to the Police.
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Recognised for
Topics
Wikipedia
London Gazette notice
Order of the British Empire
Civil Division
Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood
St. James’s Palace, London SW1
8 June 2019
THE QUEEN has been graciously pleased, on the occasion of the Celebration of Her Majesty’s Birthday, to give orders for the following promotions in, and appointments to, the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire:
D.B.E.
To be Ordinary Dames Commander of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order:
Sara Joanne THORNTON C.B.E. Q.P.M.
Lately Chief Constable, Chair, National Police Chiefs’ Council
For services to Policing.
Source: The London Gazette, issue 62666 · Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0
Location
Oxfordshire
In context
Each honour in context
Role, region and citation as recorded for each award.
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
New Year Honours 2011- Role at the time
- lately Chief Constable
- Region
- Oxfordshire
“Chief Constable, Thames Valley Police. For services to the Police.”
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Birthday Honours 2019- Role at the time
- lately Chief Constable, Chair
- Region
- London
“For services to Policing.”
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Birthday Honours 2019
Sara Joanne Thornton
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)
“For services to Policing.”
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Birthday Honours 2019
Sara Joanne Thornton
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)
“For services to Policing.”
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Birthday Honours 2019
Sara Joanne Thornton
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)
“For services to Policing.”
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In context
The bigger picture
How common is this award?
The Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire was awarded 8 times in the Birthday Honours List 2019 — about 1% of the list.
What organisation were they with?
lately Chief Constable, Thames Valley Police.
How widely is this recognised?
664 people have been recognised for Policing & Emergency Services.
Counts reflect the 2000–2026 honours lists in our records; earlier years are not yet included.
Honoured alongside them
Others awarded the Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Birthday Honours 2019
Carolyn Fairbairn
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
Winchester, Hampshire
“For services to UK Business.”
Elan Stephens
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
Aberystwyth, Dyfed
“For services to the Welsh Government and to Broadcasting.”
Elizabeth Pauline Lucy Corley
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
London
“For services to the Economy and Financial Services.”
Jacqueline Foster
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
London
“For public and political service.”
Julie Kenny
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
Lindrick Dale, South Yorkshire
“For services to Heritage.”
Laura Lee
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
London
“For services to Cancer Patients.”
Rachel Whiteread
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2019
London
“For services to Art.”
In the same field
Others recognised for Policing & Emergency Services
Across the 2000–2026 honours lists in our records, 664 people have been recognised for Policing & Emergency Services. See the full list →
Lynn Brown
PersonCommander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Gullane, East Lothian
“For services to Policing and Public Service.”
John Scott
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Belfast, City of Belfast
“For services to Policing.”
Dharmesh Mistry
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Leeds, West Yorkshire
“For services to Policing and to the community in Bradford and Leeds.”
Hitesh Mehta
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Coventry, West Midlands
“For services to Policing, to Charity and to Volunteering in Coventry, West Midlands.”
Michael Leonard
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Solihull, West Midlands
“For services to Policing.”
Scott Caswell
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
“For services to Policing and to Veterans.”
Janice Bulfield
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Fordingbridge, Dorset
“For services to Policing.”
Neil Barclay
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
London, Greater London
“For services to Prisoner Rehabilitation.”
Brian Whitaker
PersonMember Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
London, Greater London
“For services to Policing and to National Security.”
Maria Mcnicholl
PersonMember Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
London, Greater London
“For services to Prisons and Prisoners.”
Kyle Gordon
PersonMember Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Swanley, Kent
“For services to Transport Policing.”
Ian Drysdale
PersonMember Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Ashford, Kent
“For services to Policing.”
Karen Andrew
PersonMember Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Swansea, Mid Glamorgan
“For services to Prisoners, to the Administration of Justice and to the community in Swansea.”
Alexis Poole
PersonOfficer Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Exeter, Devon
“For services to Policing.”
Terence Woods
PersonCommander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Darwen, Lancashire
“For services to Policing.”
Paul Taylor
PersonCommander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Poulton-Le-Fylde, Lancashire
“For services to Science in Policing.”
Serena Kennedy
PersonDame Commander Of The Order Of The British Empire · 2026
Wigan, Greater Manchester
“For services to Policing.”
Marcos Petrou
PersonOverseas Territories Police And Fire Service Medal · 2026
“For services to policing and security in the Sovereign Base Areas.”
Xavier Buhagiar
PersonOverseas Territories Police And Fire Service Medal · 2026
“For services to police training and leadership in the Gibraltar Defence Police.”
James Thompson
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Northumberland
“For services to Policing.”
Kanti Pindoria
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
London, Greater London
“For services to Policing and to the community in London.”
Dudley Martin
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
“For services to the Policing Community.”
Susan Holliday
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Wigton, Cumbria
“For services to Policing and to the community in Cumbria.”
Leslie Hawkins
PersonBritish Empire Medal · 2026
Leigh-on-Sea, Essex
“For services to Policing and to the community in Essex.”
Source & provenance
Where this record comes from
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire · 2019
London Gazette (official record), issue 62666, notice 3294083. View the official notice ↗
Cabinet Office / gov.uk published honours list (Birthday Honours List 2019).
Published 7 June 2019.
Commander of the Order of the British Empire · 2011
London Gazette (official record), published supplement. View the issue ↗
Cabinet Office / gov.uk published honours list (New Year Honours List 2011).
Published 1 January 2011.
Location (Oxfordshire) comes from the Cabinet Office / gov.uk published honours list, not the Gazette notice, which records no recipient home location.
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