Police volunteers honoured for ‘outstanding’ work they do for Cleveland community

The evening was part of the annual Citizens in Policing Awards to celebrate the incredible contributions of the Cleveland Police Cadet Programme and Special Constabulary.

Dedicated and selfless police volunteers attended a ceremony at Yarm School on Tuesday 10 September 2024.

All volunteers give up their own time to protect and improve the communities across Cleveland and is an opportunity to acknowledge their excellence, innovation and dedication.

In total, nine awards were handed out including Cadet Community Champion of the Year, Special Constable of the Year and Special Constabulary Team of the Year.

Specials Chief Inspector James Ruddock said: “The awards ceremony provided a wonderful tribute to the hard work, passion and perseverance of our Cadets and Specials. Each nominee and award recipient represents the very best of what we all should aspire to be and accomplish, and we shouldn't underestimate the impact they have on our entire community." ​

Here is a full list of the winners:

Northside Cadet of the Year - Jessica Mae Fox

Jessica has made amazing contributions to both the weekly Cadet sessions and the community events she attends. She has contributed a huge number of hours, fully engaging in all the activities and always a smile on her face.

Southside Cadet of the Year – Ryan Short

Ryan is well liked by everyone. He is a good listener and communicator and always looking for ways to support his fellow Cadets. He has community spirit in his heart and a fantastic energy and passion for the Cadets.

Outstanding Cadet Leader of the Year – PC Macauley Walker

Despite only being with the Cadet programme for just over 12 months, alongside his demanding role as a response Officer, Macauley has already made a huge impact. His enthusiasm is undeniable. It's clear that he wants the Cadet programme to do well, and he encourages everyone to be the best they can.

Cadet Community Champion of the Year – Kayleigh Wall

Kayleigh has achieved the most volunteering hours across the whole unit for events this year – demonstrating her commitment. She fully immerses herself in activities, voluntary events and helping others with great enthusiasm.

Probationer Constable of the Year – SC Lewis Hodgson

Lewis has given 100 per cent in his training – never missing a single Wednesday night training session. He has grasped every opportunity offered to him to develop his skills, completing many hours of observational shifts, where he is always asking questions and listens to advice to develop his knowledge. He has a calm, wise and reflective manner – and is a true team player, looking out for his colleagues using his effective communication skills.

Team of the Year – Specials Matrix

In the last year, the Specials Matrix team has further established itself to deliver a wide range of specialist capabilities for Cleveland Police.

In roads policing, additional Special Constables have undertaken training in the use of stingers, fast roads policing, drink and drug-drive procedures and managing road traffic collisions. Special Constables played a lead role in tackling long-standing issues with antisocial driving at Teesside Park and have secured prosecutions for a range of road traffic offences.

Significant support has also been provided to football and high-risk events. Thanks to effective relationship building with the football unit, Specials are now regularly supporting at matches and high-profile events at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium.

The Matrix team are now more equipped than ever to deal with serious and high-risk incidents. For the first time, Specials in this team have been trained in taser – increasing capability for officers to attend the most serious incidents. An increase in drone pilots within the Special Constabulary allows officers to locate vulnerable missing people and apprehend suspects.

Special Constabulary Supporter of the Year – PC Simon Whitlock

Simon recently took on the training of the latest intake of Special Constables. Despite taking on this new responsibility at short notice, he has made a huge impact on the trainee officers under his tutorship.

Simon's unique teaching style respects the learning preferences of each student officer, using practical demonstrations, videos and real-life scenarios to bring his teaching to life. He goes above and beyond for his students, often staying late and offering to work weekends to support officers, who say they're “lucky" to have him.

Special Constabulary Supervisor of the Year – Acting Special Sergeant Andy Warburton

Andy leads the Special Constabulary's rural team, which he established from scratch after only a short time volunteering for Cleveland Police. He has developed a deep understanding of rural policing and of the East Cleveland area, where his team spend most of their time on patrol.

He has been nominated for the effort he puts into building relationships with farmers, landowners and residents in rural communities, to help them feel safe and secure. His proactive policing operations have led to positive results in bringing offenders to justice.

Special Constable of The Year – Acting Special Sergeant Tom Hawkins

Tom has been nominated for his devotion to policing, his respect for his colleagues, and his compassion and empathy for the public.

Since joining the Special Constabulary, he has dedicated large amounts of his personal time to volunteering. He attends a wide range of shifts, including warrant operations, night-time economy patrols patrols, licensing checks and large-scale events like football and festivals.

Tom understands the importance of the role he holds and undertakes additional training to improve his skills. He is described as a “credit” to the Special Constabulary and has a bright future ahead of him.

Tom has been recognised by Special Constabulary supervision for his support for a distressed male on a bridge in Stockton in March this year. Tom spent time getting to know the male, communicating with empathy and respect, before taking him home to family. The male thanked Tom for his compassion and support.