A 33-YEAR-OLD runner has stepped into a key role. Liz Keogh is the new neighbourhood policing inspector for the Avon and Somerset area.

A 33-YEAR-OLD runner has stepped into a key role.

Liz Keogh is the new neighbourhood policing inspector for the Avon and Somerset area.

The mother-of-one was born in Surrey but moved to Somerset when she was a teenager. She has been a police officer for the past 12 years, spending time pounding the streets of Bristol and winning an award for her problem-solving work.

She has also been presented with a Royal Humane Society Award for saving the life of the victim of an attempted murder in Gloucester Road in 1997.

In 2001 she became a sergeant in the South Gloucestershire policing district and three years later moved to the police headquarters in Portishead, taking on the lead role in a project to implement changes in national police training.

Inspector Keogh said: "My key philosophy in life is to grab opportunities when they arise as you never know where they will take you.

"My key objective is to deliver neighbourhood policing for the Weston area, ensuring that my staff are visible, accessible and are in the right place to tackle crimes and the fear of crime.

"I will be particularly focusing on antisocial behaviour and violent crime.