The police service held its annual Chief Constable’s awards ceremony at the Gaiety Theatre on Monday afternoon.

The awards celebrated the ‘long service, excellence and courage’ of the officers on the force.

This year’s awards would be Chief Constable Gary Roberts’ last as the head of the Isle of Man Constabulary as he retires in March 2023 after nearly four decades of service.

The afternoon started out with a speech from Mr Roberts.

He said: ‘You will notice that many of the acts that are being recognised today, involve police officers saving lives.

‘There are some people living their lives in this island today only because of the quick thinking and skill of police officers.’

There were no sergeants on stage to receive a nightstick, which Mr Roberts put down to a ‘slowdown in promotions’.

The awards started off with a tribute to the ex-officers who have passed away in the last 12 months set to music.

The Chief Constable’s commendation was given to officers for feats of ‘service, courage and determination.’

One of these officers was Gregorz Gronkowski for a display of ‘outstanding community policing’.

In December 2021 at a house in Castletown, a woman was suffering a cardiac arrest and the police were called to help.

Unfortunately, the woman died, leaving a young daughter on her own.

PC Gronkowski took the child back to the station where he made sure that the child received the care she needed from social workers.

He also made sure she got presents at Christmas, by buying her presents from his own pocket.

The Chief Constable’s certificates of merit are another award given to officers and civilians who have contributed to the police’s work.

These can be given for many different acts from helping the force adapt to the pandemic to curiosity which helped save a life.

civilians

One of the civilians who received this honour was Joanna Whittle, who received it for ‘Excellence in reducing and preventing offending’.

Ms Whittle has been a major figure in youth justice over the years.

Mr Roberts explained how she has been a ‘constant’ in the fight to improve the prospects for young people.

He also said that she was commended for her ‘dedication, determination and skill’.

The first awards given were medals for long service and good conduct, awarded to officers with 20 years under their belt.

These went to PC Richard Barker, DC James Butler, PC Stewart Footer, DS Charles Maloney and DC Alison Parker.

Service bars were awarded for long service in the Special Constabulary, which is the part-time volunteer force of the police.

Those receiving a bar for 14 years were SC Aileen Broad, DO William Costain, SC Daniel Crompton and DC Alison Parker,

SC Michael Barratt and Chief Officer of the Special Constabulary Dan Johnson received the award for 19 years working for the Special Constabulary.

SC Thomas Barkle, SC Andrew Graham and Special Superintendent Stephen Broad received the service bar for 29 years of service.

This was followed a recognition of the 15 years of service of support workers Sarah Redmond and Michael Workman.

The next award was the Society for the Protection of Life from Fire award, which was presented to PC Steffan Hoy, Lauren O’Dell and Ged Power.

Following the certificates, the trophies were handed out.

The first trophy was the Dr Philip Christian Trophy for the unsung heroes, and this year it went to Karen Norman and PC Elena Roberts.

Next up was the Community Partnership Initiative award, which was awarded to the Customs and Excise Division for their work against drug-trafficking.

This includes their work on operation Strongbox, which helped stop organised crime groups in the UK using the Isle of Man as a base of operations.

Next up was the Police Federation cup for service to the public, which went to DC Leanne Cullivan.

The Les Grady trophy was awarded to PC Marc Chinn for his sporting achievements.

Connor O’Toole won the Richard Kennaugh for the best probationary officer.

The Chief Constable’s Cup for the special constabulary, which is given to the officer on the special division with the most potential, was given to SC Maria Kinrade.

The Ellan Vannin Fuels Richard Lloyd Police Youth Police Youth Scheme trophy was awarded to Beatrice Smith for her performance in the scheme.

The Sergeant and pailor award was given to Sgt Emily Butler and DS Charles Maloney.

The Inclusion and Diversity award was given to Sharon Walker for her work in helping the forces policies be more inclusive.

The R.K. Eason Trophy, for the most outstanding performance in the fields of police service, was given to PC Sean Kelly.

Finally Chief Constable Gary Roberts received the lifetime achievement award.