Nominations are now open for awards to celebrate Police Volunteers

Policing and Fire Minister Nick Hurd launched the 24th annual Lord Ferrers Awards on Friday 18 August to recognise the outstanding contribution of special constables, police support volunteers and volunteer police cadets.

This year a new category has been introduced for Technical Innovation, to encourage recognition of ‘cyber specials’ and those volunteers using technology creatively to combat the changing nature of crime.  

Last year almost 300 nominations were submitted by police forces across England and Wales.  For the first time members of the public were able to recommend volunteers for their service, and 43 exceptional candidates were shortlisted.

Policing and Fire Minister, Nick Hurd said:

“Policing has a long and proud history of volunteers and the Lord Ferrers Awards are an opportunity to recognise and celebrate their achievements.

“Every day special constables, police support volunteers and volunteer police cadets make a selfless contribution to tackling crime and supporting police forces.

“I urge police officers and members of the public to nominate police volunteers who they think have made an outstanding contribution to their communities for an award.”

The award ceremony, sponsored by Police Mutual, will take place in Central London in November 2017. Winners will be presented with their awards by Home Officer Ministers, senior officials and Chief Police Officers.

If you know of a special constable, police support volunteer or volunteer police cadet who deserves recognition, submit your nomination via this online form.  The deadline for nominations is Sunday 17 September.   

Please be aware that:

• you can nominate once per application and you can make more than one application
• the Home Office can’t accept ‘self’ nominations from individuals or teams
• the Home Office can’t shortlist nominations where long service, extra hours or bravery are the sole case for nomination as these are recognised by other awards

The award categories are:

Ferrers Special Constabulary – Individual Award: Celebrating Special Constables who have demonstrated a sustained and significant contribution to policing in their local communities.

Ferrers Special Constabulary – Team Award (Sponsored by Police Mutual): Recognising teams of Special Constables who have demonstrated a sustained and significant contribution to policing in their local communities.

Police Support Volunteer – Individual Award: Celebrating Police Support Volunteers who have demonstrated a significant and sustained contribution to policing in their local communities.

Police Support Volunteer – Team Award: Recognising teams who have worked together to make a significant and sustained contribution to policing in their local communities.

Volunteer Police Cadet – Individual Award: Celebrating individual Volunteer Police Cadets who have demonstrated a significant and sustained contribution to policing in their local communities.

Volunteer Police Cadet – Team Award: Open to teams who have worked together to make a significant and sustained contribution to policing in their local communities.

Employer Supported Policing Award: Open to individuals and teams of employees who support their local police force through volunteering. The award recognises the contribution of both volunteers and their employers and will now be open to those accredited under the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme.

Leadership Award (Sponsored by ASCCO): Open to individual Special Constables who have demonstrated a significant and sustained contribution to leadership.

A new category for Technical Innovation Award this year – Team or Individual: Open to Special Constables, Police Support Volunteers or Volunteer Police Cadets.  The award recognises the contribution volunteers can bring to using IT and technology to support policing, to encourage recognition of ‘cyber specials’ and those volunteers using technology creatively.