A candidate has been chosen to become Staffordshire Police's new Chief Constable.

Chris Noble, who is currently Assistant Chief Constable at Humberside Police, has been named as Staffordshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Ben Adams' preferred candidate to head up the force. He was appointed out of a shortlist of four and the appointment is set to be formally ratified by the Police, Fire and Crime Panel next month.

It follows the retirement of former boss Gareth Morgan. Emma Barnett, who was previously Deputy Chief Constable, has been serving as Temporary Chief Constable since his departure.

A new Chief Fire Officer for Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service is also being appointed to replace Becci Bryant, who is retiring after five years in the post. She made history when she became the first woman to lead a fire service in the UK.

Mr Adams told Thursday's Police, Fire and Crime Panel meeting that "terrific progress" had been made in the appointment of the new Chief Constable and Chief Fire Officer.

He added: "I gather both are coming to meet members on 12th October. There's a notice period, so that's the earliest you can see both.

"I'm extremely satisfied with the two preferred candidates. I hope you will be as impressed as I am with both of them.

"I think they are going to put us in a very good place, given the time they need to do what they've got to do. They're full of energy and full of ideas. They aren't always going to agree with me but I'm sure they will be polite about it when they don't.

"My whole team are looking forward to working with both of them. I hope you will find it very illuminating when you meet them."

Panel chairman Bernard Peters said: "I think we're looking forward to meeting them. I think we're reassured a timely approach has been adopted here and we're pleased to see preferred candidates have been identified and will be coming to us for ratification in the near future.

"We will look forward to that opportunity to have a full and frank discussion with them. There will be some focused questions."

Speaking about the new Chief Constable before the meeting Mr Adams said: "I was impressed with the calibre of candidates for Staffordshire's Chief Constable, who underwent a robust process to ensure we got the very best person to lead the force forward and keep the people of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent safe. Chris was the panel's and my clear choice for the role.

"I'm confident Chris has the knowledge, passion and experience needed to lead Staffordshire Police during these challenging times, meeting the constantly evolving face of crime and other threats, and keeping our communities safe from harm.

'I would like to pay tribute to the current Temporary Chief Constable, Emma Barnett, for all the hard work and dedication she has given to date to Staffordshire Police. In particular I thank her for her leadership in the last few months since the former Chief Constable retired.

"Emma has been pivotal in ensuring the force is ready to take on whatever policing challenges the future brings.'

Mr Noble has been a police officer for more than 20 years and has served in the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Before moving to Humberside he was Commander for Belfast City Policing District, with responsibility for overt counter-terrorism policing, local response and neighbourhood policing, and public order and civil contingencies.

He is also the NPCC (National Police Chiefs' Council) lead for protests nationally and has recently advised several police forces on how best to manage and police the ongoing M25 protests.

He said: "I want to thank the Commissioner for the trust he is putting in me. I look forward to serving the people, officers and staff of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent as their Chief Constable, and working with partners to keep our communities safe."