THE head of the Lancashire Police Authority is about to take on a new role as a life peer in the House of Lords.

Dr Ruth Henig, chairman of the authority since its creation in 1995, has accepted her appointment to the upper house.

As well as her role as LPA chairwoman, Baroness Henig is also a Labour county councillor, chairman of the national Association of Police Authorities and, in recognition of her contributions to policing services, was awarded the CBE in 2000.

Baroness Henig, 60, is the daughter of Jewish refugees who came to England from Holland in 1940. She is a former Dean of arts and humanities at Lancaster University, where she taught history for 34 years until her recent retirement.

She said: "It is an honour and I am delighted.

"Naturally I am very excited at the prospect of starting a new career, it will be a great opportunity for me to continue to raise local issues such as health, education and safer communities at a national level."