Susan Atkins (civil servant)

{{Short description|British civil servant (born 1952)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

Susan Ruth Elizabeth Atkins CB (née Prickett; born 4 March 1952) is a British civil servant.

File:bbuilding.jpg]]

Susan Atkins graduated from Birmingham University with an LLB in Law in 1973.{{cite journal |url=http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/Documents/alumni/old-joe/Old-Joe-autumn-2014.pdf |title=Queen's Birthday Honours 2014 |magazine=Old Joe |date=Autumn 2014 |access-date=20 August 2019 |publisher=University of Birmingham}}{{cite web |url=http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/Documents/alumni/lostalumni/lostalumni1973.pdf |title=Lost Alumni, Class of 1978 |work=University of Birmingham |year=1978 |access-date=20 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222010312/http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/Documents/alumni/lostalumni/lostalumni1973.pdf |archive-date=22 December 2014}} Atkins trained as a solicitor in local government. She was a law academic for 12 years, specialising in anti-discrimination law, and co-wrote Women and the Law with Brenda Hoggett (now Lady Hale of Richmond).{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/law/2018/dec/12/susan-atkins-we-have-got-to-take-seriously-the-threat-to-women-in-public-life|title=Susan Atkins: 'We must take the threat to women in public life seriously'|last=Baksi|first=Catherine|date=12 December 2018|work=The Guardian|accessdate=29 September 2019}} She joined the civil service in 1989.

Atkins was appointed in 2007 to be the first independent Service Complaints Commissioner for the Armed Forces. Atkins is also a non-executive director of the Quality Assurance Agency and of the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education.

Susan Atkins was appointed the first Chief Executive of the Independent Police Complaints Commission in 2003. Her previous posts include Deputy Chief Executive of the Equal Opportunities Commission, Departmental Equal Opportunities Officer for the Home Office and director of the Women and Equality Unit in the Cabinet Office. She has also been a visiting professor at Southampton University.{{cite web |url=http://armedforcescomplaints.independent.gov.uk/aboutus.htm#commissioner |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916180906/http://armedforcescomplaints.independent.gov.uk/aboutus.htm |archive-date=16 September 2015 |access-date=20 August 2019 |title=About us |work=Service Complaints Commissioner for the Armed Forces}}{{cite news |url=http://www.gov-news.org/gov/uk/news/dr_susan_atkins_named_as_first_service_complaints/40306.html |title=Dr Susan Atkins is named as the first Service Complaints Commissioner |date=7 November 2007 |access-date=20 August 2019 |work=Government News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304030557/http://www.gov-news.org/gov/uk/news/dr_susan_atkins_named_as_first_service_complaints/40306.html |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=usurped |publisher=United Kingdom Government}}{{cite web |url=http://armedforcescomplaints.independent.gov.uk/ |title=Service Complaints Commissioner |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080402002856/http://armedforcescomplaints.independent.gov.uk/ |archive-date=2 April 2008 |access-date=20 August 2019 |work=Service Complaints Commissioner for the Armed Forces}}

Atkins was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 2014 Birthday Honours for services to Armed Service Personnel.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jun/13/queens-birthday-honours-knights |title=Queen's birthday honours list 2014: Knights |date=13 June 2014 |access-date=20 August 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News & Media Limited}}