Karen WEBB
Commissioner of Police Karen Leanne WEBB APM
1st female Commissioner of Police in NSW
Regd. # 23998
from Goulburn Police Academy Class 228
1 February 2022 – 9 June 2025
Commissioner Karen Webb joined NSW Police Force in May 1987 and has performed general duties and criminal investigations both in the metropolitan area of Sydney and Regional NSW. She has performed duties at the Child Mistreatment Unit, Drug Enforcement Agency, Detectives Training Unit and command roles at Forensic Services Group, Local Area Commands, Operations Manager, North West Metropolitan Region Commander, State Surveillance Branch and Assistant Commissioner Police Transport & Public Safety Command and Traffic and Highway Patrol Command.
Ma’am Webb has led high-level projects including a joint National Institute of Forensic Science/Prime Minister & Cabinet research project, National Accreditation of NSW Police Forensic Services laboratories, 90 Years and 100 Years of Women in Policing celebrations. She was awarded the Australian Police Medal in 2015.
Commissioner Webb has also commanded several operations including Invictus Games 2018, Australia Day 2018 & 2019, sporting events, crime reduction and public safety strategies and was a member of the World Youth Day command team. She was a Local Area Commander for the Merrylands High School riot, bias-crimes such as the Sri-Lankan acid burn attack and multiple drive-by shootings. These events received national and international media attention requiring high-level discussions and stakeholder engagement.
Ma’am Webb has undertaken numerous internal and external courses. Career highlights include the Detectives Education Program, Bachelor of Professional Studies, Executive Master of Public Administration, overseas study tours of the UK and USA. She completed the Australia and New Zealand Police Leadership Strategy and International Action Learning Group Pearls in Policing program and has also participated in the NSW Government Leadership Academy program.
Ma’am Webb has also served as the Corporate Sponsor for Women in Policing, LGBTI and Victims of Crime & Customer Service.
In August 2017 she was promoted to the rank of Assistant Commissioner at the Police Transport & Public Safety Command where she was responsible for several frontline and specialist commands including the Police Transport, Aviation, Dog, Major Events & Emergency Management Command, Marine Area Command, Mounted Unit and State Planning Unit.
In 2018, Commissioner Webb was appointed to the NSW Police Legacy Board and to the State Rescue Board. She was appointed the Deputy State Emergency Operations Controller in 2019 and worked closely with the emergency service agencies during the bushfires, floods and COVID-19 pandemic.
In June 2020, Ma’am Webb was appointed as the first female Commander of the Traffic & Highway Patrol Command before being promoted to Deputy Commissioner, Corporate Services a year later.
In November 2021, Premier Dominic Perrottet announced Ma’am Webb’s appointment as the 23rd Commissioner of the NSW Police Force. Commissioner Webb was formally sworn in at a ceremony in her hometown of Boorowa in February 2022, becoming the first woman to hold the position in the history of the state.
Commissioner Webb is a proud working parent of two sons.
Karen Webb was born and raised in Boorowa in the south western slopes of New South Wales, and attended Boorowa Central School.[5][6]
Webb joined NSW Police in 1987 and previously was responsible for traffic and highway patrol and public transport.[3] She joined the Castle Hill Police Station, in the 1990s at a time when 10% of police officers were women, and grew to 35% as at 2021.[7] She later stated in 2021 that she “look forward to growing our diversity and inclusion in the organisation”.[7] Webb was the first woman to lead Traffic and Highway Patrol, since 2020.[3] She was promoted in 2017 to assistant commissioner, and subsequently moved to deputy commissioner in July 2021.[3] She has been a Board Member of NSW Police Legacy since 2018, and Vice-Patron since 2022.[8]
On 1 February 2022, Webb was formally appointed as Commissioner of the New South Wales Police Force.[2] Previous police commissioner ceremonies were traditionally held at Government House in Sydney, but Webb chose to accept her appointment in her alma mater at Boorowa Central School, NSW.[6]