Chard PC in New Year's Honours list (From Chard & Ilminster News)

Chard PC in New Year's Honours list

11:20am Sunday 31st December 2006 in Chard By News Correspondent

CHARD beat manager Bill Geddes has received the Queen's Police Medal in the New Year's Honours for his work in the community.

PC Geddes has been a beat manager in Chard since January 2002 and has since made a major impact.

He has now been recognised for his work with a QPM, which is given to police officers for 'distinguished police service'.

PC Geddes said: "I am extremely honoured to have been awarded the Queen's Police Medal by Her Majesty, and I am certainly looking forward to receiving it at the palace - that is quite an honour in itself.

"However, I could not have achieved this without the help of the community - this honour is for them as well as me.

"I would also like to thank the Constabulary for giving me the opportunity to achieve the QPM and the persons who took the time to nominate me for it."

PC Geddes was instrumental in the formation of the country's first Community Justice Panel which sought to involve the community in the criminal justice system. This work has been recognised as national best practice in the field of restorative justice.

Simultaneously, he introduced a Drinkswise system, ensuring the whole town participated in the drive to reduce alcohol-fuelled violence. This, combined with CJP, has significantly improved the quality of the environment in Chard.

Bill has also been instrumental in tackling anti-social behaviour. He broke new ground by bringing neighbourhoods and youth offenders together into a Local Action Team to discuss and solve community issues. This led to a significant reduction in incidents and complaints. The CJP has further cemented this success.

In the last few years, Chard has seen the introduction of a large Portuguese community with some resultant tension within the town. Bill has taken a lead role in both accommodating the Portuguese community and resolving tensions.

He established the Portuguese Support Group, which aims to ensure that the community has access to all community services. This culminated in the Portuguese Support Day. Established in the face of indifference in some quarters, he used his force of personality to organise a day that provided valuable health, education and welfare advice to the community.

While not strictly a police issue, he rightly sought to ensure that a socially isolated community received the support it deserved. The Portuguese Consulate has commended this work At the same time Bill has robustly dealt with racially aggravated offences, taking the lead in ensuring offenders are brought to justice.

Chief Constable Colin Port said: "This is excellent news for both PC Geddes and the Chard community. It is a clear indication of the recognition of his hard work and efforts as a beat manager.

"The work he has undertaken, particularly in respect of his support to the Portuguese community, has had a direct and tangible impact upon the community of Chard.

"He is the epitome of a Neighbourhood Beat Manager."