Big award for ‘Mini Police’ work in Edlington schools

Ian Warhurst and Robert Hutchinson, both based in Doncaster, won the ‘Police Staff of the Year’ award for their ‘Mini Police’ programme, a forcewide initiative designed to help young people have positive attitudes towards the police and their local community.

Funded by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, the programme has seen the PCSOs take youngsters on community patrols and litter picks and discuss issues including parking, speeding, anti-social behaviour and communications and phonetics.

Ian, who joined in 2012, and Robert, who joined in 2017, were described as “fully embedded in the community and known by a lot of people in the community they serve,” by Chief Insp Joseph Hunt.

Before joining in 2012, Ian was a community warden at an estate in Barnsley and then decided to join South Yorkshire Police, training in Edlington and never leaving. 

He said: “I decided to become a PCSO as I’ve always worked with and enjoyed being in the community.

“Being a PCSO is really rewarding, especially if you care about the place you live and work. It gives you an opportunity to really make a difference to people’s lives and the area in which they live.

“I love going into schools and speaking with the children, encouraging them to be better citizens and care about their own community.”

Robert, who started in Mexborough, has assisted colleagues with multiple arrests of wanted people. 

He said: “I decided to become a PCSO in the hope I could help make a difference in the community and though it can be challenging at times, it’s extremely rewarding.

“The nature of the work we do in local schools is brilliant as we build such a rapport with local people. I’m not just a nameless face in a police uniform, we can be someone the community knows by name and feels able to approach.

"Whether that’s to share relevant information, or just about their own daily lives.

“My highlights so far also include assisting with the arrests of multiple wanted people across the district. Every day is different.”