The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
‘Genuinely good man’: Former Tayside Chief Constable Bill Spence, aged 76
Former Tayside Chief Constable Bill Spence has died at his Angus home after a short battle with cancer. He was 76.
North-east born Mr Spence left school with no qualifications but rose through the ranks during a Scottish police career of almost 40 years to hold the top post in Tayside until his retirement in 2000.
Awarded the Queen’s Police Medal in 1989, the popular figure described policing as a unique job which he loved, regarding it a privilege to serve the communities he worked in.
Dundee Lord Provost Ian Borthwick led tributes to him, describing the former chief constable as “a genuinely good man”.
Daughter Shona McLeod said her dad was a strong, kind, gentle man who she never saw get angry.
She said: “We were lucky that he was able to die at home surrounded by his family. He believed it was a privilege to serve with the police. He was very proud of his career which grew out of his love to serve.”
Born and raised in Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Mr Spence began his police career as an 18-year-old with the then Renfrew and Bute Constabulary, stationed in Paisley and then Rothesay.
He gained an Open University degree and then a law degree at Strathclyde University while serving as an officer.
Mr Spence arrived in Tayside from Strathclyde Police in 1988 when he was appointed deputy chief constable, going on to assume the top post in 1995.
His passionate pursuit of new technologies saw Dundee becoming the centre for the first DNA testing lab in Scotland and Mr Spence also led moves to install CCTV across the region, as well as the addition of a police helicopter.
Throughout his tenure, the Tayside crime rate saw an annual fall.
A keen gardener and caravanner, Mr Spence was committed to charity work following his retirement, particularly that of the Order of St John Scotland.
Mr Spence, who was diagnosed with cancer in January, is survived by his wife Hazel, daughters Shona and Maureen and four grandchildren.