Prizes for police who walk that extra mile for us
Two Scarborough officers win police awards
For Scarborough’s Detective Constable Jeremy Pratt, time off is a luxury.
His job as the force’s family liaison officer means that when tragedy strikes, he needs to be there for the victim - even if it means cutting a holiday short.
It’s this extraordinary dedi cation which has seen him, along with Scarborough special constable Raffi Aghanian, honoured for their service.
The pair picked up prizes at North Yorkshire Police’s annual awards ceremony.
The i n aug u ra l A n nu a l Awards event, which was attended by winners, their families and senior officers, was d e s i g n e d to re c og n i s e th e achievements of officers and staff who go that extra mile for the public.
DC Pratt was awarded the gold Compassion Award for his work supporting bereaved f amilies i n high- profile and complex murder cases.
Nominated by his colleagues for his dedication, DC Pratt was praised for his professionalism, sensitivity and tact in dealing with families in times of grief and distress.
The j udging panel heard how he often cancelled rest days and leave to be there when a family most needed his guidance and help during an investigation, and how many of the families he was dealt with have sent in letters of thanks for his support.
Scarborough’s other winner was Special Constable Raffi Aghanian – a well-known and respected figure in the town, who after 20 years has recently retired from his volunteer policing duties to spend more time with his family. As a Special Constable, Raffi gave more than 13,000 hours of service in almost every area of the Force.
He was awarded the Glenn Goodman trophy for an outstanding Special Constable. The trophy is one of North Yorkshire Police’s premier honours.
It is named after SC Glenn Goodman who was tragically shot dead when on duty by an IRA gunman in 1992 – a mere three weeks i nto his volunteer career at North Yorkshire Police. Glenn Goodman’s parents attended the ceremony to present the award in their son’s name. Raffi said the award was a dream come true, adding: “I was so excited when I got the letter inviting me to the ceremony that I didn’t read it properly. I thought I had just been nominated. It was only on the morning of the awards that my daughter read the letter right through and told me, “Dad, it doesn’t say you’re nominated. It says you’ve won!”
“It was sad to retire f rom North Yorkshire Police, but I have always given it 110 per cent, and with a full-time job and now grand-children, I felt I could only give 109 percent – and that’s not enough for me.” DC Pratt’s parents picked his award up on his behalf - as he was enjoying a well-earned holiday.