Beat that: Rochdale Special Constable wins award

Special Inspector David Geeson, Special Constable Anthony Conroy and Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy

An innovative special constable from Rochdale was recognised with an award at Greater Manchester Police’s Special Constabulary Gala Awards Dinner.

Special Constable Anthony Conroy, who works the beat in Heywood, was awarded Rochdale’s “Divisional Officer of the Year” after a launching a successful operation to reduce anti-social behaviour in the town centre.

Special Constable Conroy was nominated by both Special Inspector David Geeson and Regular Inspector Stephen Clarke.

They said: “Tony started working in the town centre of Heywood in early 2011.

“He very quickly realised the havoc a certain number of youths were creating for residents, licensees and shop keepers, and so prepared an operation which would run for several weeks to help reduce the antisocial behaviour.

“Tony led this operation from the front. He organised high visibility patrols with fellow Specials, PCSOs and Community Beat Managers.

“The local Inspector, Stephen Clarke, was immediately impressed with the operation and Tony’s dedication. He ensured he had the resources he needed to carry out his plan.

“This operation has been a tremendous success. Within the first six months confidence in the police has risen dramatically and reports of antisocial behaviour have dropped.”

Key objectives of the operation included analysing incident logs to find patterns of behaviour, speaking to local residents and business owners while on patrol, targeting incident hotspots and forming a community partnership.

The ceremony, held at the force’s Sedgley Park site last month, saw officers from the special constabulary awarded for acts of bravery and community service.

It was attended by Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy and newly-elected Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd.

Also honoured on the night was Melanie Bowling of the Bury Division, who was awarded Special Constable of the Year, and she has since joined the Rochdale Division as a regular officer.

Special Constables are volunteers who have the same powers as regular police officers, but do not receive payment for the duties they perform.

They perform the same range of duties as regular officers, including foot patrols, policing football matches and providing a police presence at public events.