A memorial service has been held today to honour Essex Police Inspector Mark Estall who died while on duty earlier this month.

The service was held at Chelmsford Cathedral this afternoon to pay tribute to the much-loved and respected officer who died suddenly at the Operational Policing Command base in Boreham on Thursday, January 5.

Insp Estall’s cortege stopped at his place of work before moving on to the cathedral where it was met by a full guard of honour.

Insp Estall had served with Essex Police for almost 27 years.

He started his career as a Pc in Benfleet and after four years took up a position as a traffic officer in Chelmsford and then on to Rayleigh.

He was posted to Basildon on promotion as a sergeant in 1997 and fulfilled a number of positions in the town before becoming an armed response officer based at Laindon in 2003.

From here he moved on to the Force Support Unit based at Boreham where he remained as sergeant until May 2015 when he was promoted to inspector to take up a post at Stansted Airport.

His last role with the force took him back to the Force Support Unit as inspector; a job he regularly described as his dream role.

During the memorial service officers spoke fondly of their colleague recounting their memories of working with Insp Estall while Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh delivered the eulogy.

He said: "Rightly today there are hundreds of people here to pay tribute. But there are hundreds, if not thousands more, whose only direct connection to each other is the impact that Mark had on their careers and their lives. Since his tragic death, we’ve heard from people who met Mark ten, 15, 20 years ago. Their paths may have crossed fleetingly. But they never forgot Mark. They remembered his energy, his sense of humour, his dedication.

"If you were building a cop, they’d be a cop like Mark. You’d want people to learn from him, you’d want people to be like him. You’d want your teams to have someone in them who would lighten the mood and make people feel stronger, even in moments of darkness or yes - weakness.”

Mark’s father Chris provided these words in tribute to his son: "Mark was a son any parent would be proud of. A wonderful family man; a loving husband, a fun, caring father who's grown up children are clearly cast from the same mould as their dad.

"A dutiful, supportive son and brother who was hero worshipped by his nieces and nephews. "Dedicated to his role as a police officer he was respected and revered by his colleagues. The world is a poorer place without him.”

The memorial was followed with a private reception.