John Keith Avery AO

Order of Australia

The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...

, APM

Australian Police Medal

The Australian Police Medal is awarded for distinguished service by a member of an Australian police force.The APM was introduced in 1986, and replaced the Imperial Queen's Police Medal for Gallantry and Queen's Police Medal for Distinguished Service....

 (born 18 August 1934) was the Commissioner

Commissioner

Commissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....

 of the New South Wales Police

New South Wales Police

The New South Wales Police Force is the primary law enforcement agency in the State of New South Wales, Australia. It is an agency of the Government of New South Wales within the New South Wales Ministry for Police...

 from 1984 to 1991.

John Keith Avery was the 17th leader of the organisation and the 10th person known under the title of Commissioner of Police. Avery was one of the longest serving and more popular Commissioners of Police to serve the state of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

.

One of the first Police Commissioners to have a tertiary education, obtaining a Masters Degree from Macquarie University and a Diploma in Criminology. He was awarded the Officer of the Order of Australia, Australian Police Medal, Centenary Medal and National Medal.

He is also the author of a popular book titled Police - Force or Service? which he wrote as an Inspector, ultimately resulting in the organisations' name being changed from NSW Police Force to NSW Police Service.

The library at the New South Wales Police College at Goulburn is named in his honour. The former headquarters of the New South Wales Police in College Street, Sydney

College Street, Sydney

College Street in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia is a major street in the centre of the Central Business District. It runs from Queens Square near St James station to Whitlam Square at Liverpool St...

 was also named in his honour, named the Avery Building

Avery Building

The Avery Building was the headquarters of the New South Wales Police Force, Australia from the 1970s until 2004, when a new headquarters building was opened at Parramatta in conjunction with police executive offices located in Elizabeth Street, Sydney...

 until the headquarters moved to a new building in Parramatta

Parramatta, New South Wales

Parramatta is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located in Greater Western Sydney west of the Sydney central business district on the banks of the Parramatta River. Parramatta is the administrative seat of the Local Government Area of the City of Parramatta...

 in 2003. He has retired with his wife to Port Macquarie on the mid-north coast of New South Wales.