AVON and Somerset Police has celebrated the achievements of its officers, staff, and volunteers at an Outstanding Policing Awards presentation night held in Bath.
The event recognised the commitment and dedication of officers and staff who had gone above and beyond their duty to make a positive impact.
More than 200 nominations were received across the 11 award categories.
Chief Constable Sarah Crew, who selected the winners with Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Mark Shelford, said: “This was an important opportunity to really celebrate our policing colleagues here in Avon and Somerset who go that extra mile.
“Their extraordinary commitment to our communities deserves to be recognised and it has been a real privilege to hear these examples of outstanding policing.
“Our finalists represent the very best of policing – putting the public first, being courageous, showing compassion, taking leadership, and being inclusive.”
Among those awarded on the evening were ‘Police Officer of the Year’ PC Craig Laramy, who has 21 years in service.
PC Laramy was nominated for the award after attending three particularly challenging incidents in the past 12 months involving domestic abuse.
During each incident, Craig remained calm in what were traumatic and stressful situations for all involved, delivering outstanding service to the victims.
Improvement and assurance officer Anjalee Joglekar won the ‘Learning Award’ for her commitment to developing and improving our response to domestic abuse victims and her drive for providing outstanding care.
The ceremony ended with the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ given to those with more than 25 years of service who had made a significant contribution to policing.
Four winners were recognised with more than 150 years’ service to policing collectively.
They were senior force chaplain Andy Paget, community Speedwatch network co-ordinator Doug Allen, PC Louisa Williams, and resource unit assistant Pat Morgan.
Chief Constable Crew said: “Taken together, these nominees embody what we want in Avon and Somerset Police, supportive, caring, colleagues who not only care for their peers, but also our diverse communities.
“Their long-standing dedication has had a huge impact on the organisation and the communities we serve.”
PC Louisa Williams said: “It is a huge honour to be nominated and to receive an award. I think for a lot of us on the frontline, we just want to do our jobs and do it well, but to be recognised for that is a huge honour.”
PCC Mark Shelford said: “As commissioner I am very proud to be a part of the ‘Outstanding Policing Awards’ for Avon and Somerset Police.
“It recognises some of the amazing work that has been going on.
“The commitment and compassion shown should be recognised by all and I hope that these awards inspire many others to see the good that can be done in policing.”
The award categories and winners were:
Innovation
Cyber protect officer Megan Haldane
Citizen in Policing
Data processor Kieran Vile
Outstanding Leadership
PS Joanna Babbage
Special Recognition – PCSO Award
PCSO supervisor Sam Bushen and PCSO Dawn Pearse
Representing our Values – Caring Award
Detention officer Alex Klaar
Representing our Values – Learning
Improvement and assurance officer Anjalee Joglekar and contingency planning officer Simon Bale
Representing our Values – Inclusive
St George and Barton Hill Neighbourhood Policing Team
Representing our Values – Courageous
Insp Samantha Kayser
Police Staff Member of the Year
Designated investigations officer David Nicholls
Police Officer of the Year
PC Craig Laramy
Lifetime Achievement Award
Senior force chaplain Andy Paget
PC Louisa Williams
Resource unit assistant Pat Morgan
Community Speedwatch network co-ordinator Doug Allen