Young duo are police award winners
Three Hinckley winners of Leicestershire Police awards
THERE were three Hinckley winners at the recent Leicestershire Police Volunteers in Policing Awards.
Jackie Saunt, a Police Service Volunteer, won the PSV Innovation Award for creating the Hinckley Neighbourhood Watch App. The app has police news updates, safety advice and information about Hinckley’s police team.
Police cadets Kiera Pibworth and Harley Rose Sparks were both highly commended in the Cadets Special Recognition Award. They visited schools to promote the force.
The event was held on Thursday June 14 at Leicester’s King Power Stadium.
Lord Willy Bach, Leicestershire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “The support provided by our small army of volunteers has never been more important. Demand on all areas of policing continues to increase and the skill-set required becomes ever more diverse. Volunteers bring wide-ranging experience and new skills to help keep our communities safe and feeling secure. These awards are a small acknowledgement of the contribution made by our volunteers in so many ways, as cadets, special constables, police service volunteers, independent custody visitors and so on. I would like to thank each and every one of them.”
Chief Constable Simon Cole closed the evening and said: “We hold the awards night every year to celebrate the hundreds of incredible people who volunteer for Leicestershire Police as specials, cadets, police support vol- unteers and chaplains.
“In the last year they volunteered more than 107,000 hours to helping us keep our communities safe, which is a fantastic achievement. I’m very proud to have been able to have joined the Lord Lieutenant, Police and Crime Commissioner, Sheriffs and sponsors to say ‘thank you’.”
Special Constable Karolina Zalewska was among the award recipients and picked up the Special Constables Community Engagement award, sponsored by the Police and Crime Commissioner, Lord Willy Bach.
Following the UK terror attacks last year, Karolina recognised the increased pressure facing the police force, and the need to provide reassurance to our communities. As a result, she cancelled her plans, put on her uniform and went out on duty to support her regular colleagues.
Delighted with her award, Karolina said: “I am completely shocked and overwhelmed to have won this award! It really means a lot to me to be recognised in this way; I just love being a special. A lot of people ask me if I’m planning on joining the regulars, but I’m honestly not – I just like getting out there and helping people. It’s actually quite amazing that I get to do the role of a police officer, and still have my separate full-time job. I really enjoy volunteering my time and I plan to continue.”
Grace Burton was awarded Volunteer Police Cadet of the year, sponsored by the Leicester City Football Club Community Trust.
The 14-year-old is a member of Loughborough cadet unit, and balances her school work with caring for her younger brother, who has autism, and still finds time to attend every single cadet unit meeting and volunteer in her community at the weekend.
After receiving her award, Grace said: “I’m really pleased I’ve won this award, I wasn’t expecting it at all! It really does mean a lot to me, and I do sometimes struggle with everything going on in my life. For me, being a police cadet is great because I get to learn new, interesting things and also have some fun with friends. I like helping out in the younger cadet’s session too, which is before mine. It’s really nice to have this achievement.”
Liz Cattell, a police support volunteer from Wigston, received the Diversity award, a new award generously sponsored by The St Philip’s Centre.
Liz coordinates monthly visits to the Leicester Centre for Integrated Living, and organises for police volunteers to attend and provide crime prevention advice at their café for ‘Empowering Disabled People’.