Mr Coleman walked from one end of Derbyshire to the other during August and September as part of his last tour of duty after six years in the force's hot seat.

Chief on the Beat saw him being joined by past and present colleagues along the way as he visited virtually every police station in the county clocking more than 150 miles and netting £31,500 for five chosen charities.

These were the Derbyshire Association for the Blind, Umbrella, Derbyshire Community Foundation, Peak District Mountain Rescue Team and Sporting Futures.

Mr Coleman was able to hand over a cheque to each of the charities at a presentation event at Derbyshire police headquarters in Ripley on January 10th 2008.

He said: "I set out last summer on what I initially thought was a crazy idea to walk 150 miles around Derbyshire.

"In the event, "Chief on the Beat" proved to be an outstanding success in many ways, and we all had a fantastic time walking the length and breadth of our beautiful county, raising money for five local charities.

"I am delighted to be able to share more than £31,000 between the charities, which is great credit to my team, to all those who took part and raised sponsorship, and to the generosity of our local communities."

Mr Coleman stepped down from his post as Chief Constable on September 30th 2007.