VIP Newsletter VIP Newsletter October 2017 | Page 12

Police Support Volunteers become
Special Constables
Two former Police Support
Volunteers (PSV) who
worked with officers
and the community
in the Shirebrook
area have started
their training to
become special
constables.
Both Adrian and Natalia have worked with
the Shirebrook Safer Neighbourhood
Policing Team to help them
bridge the gap with harder to
reach communities, and help
officers to communicate
with people who have not
spoken English as their first
language.
Sergeant Mark Church,
of the Shirebrook Safer
Neighbourhood Policing
Team said: “Congratulations
to both Adrian and Natalia
on becoming Special
Constables, we hope that you
continue to enjoy every day with
the police service and I hope one
day you may become police officers.
Adrian
Portianow
(20) became a PSV
in July 2016.
He is a student studying
for a degree in crime and
criminology and speaks
English, Polish, Czech and
Slovakian.
Natalia Witczak , originally from Poland,
became a PSV in October 2015.
She speaks both English and Polish fluently and was
commended at a special police ceremony for helping a
vulnerable domestic abuse victim.
“It is heart-warming to see that there are people
who live locally who want to give something back to their
community and it makes me proud that these people
have worked with our team. I would take the opportunity
to say a big thank you to Natalia and Adrian for their hard
work as volunteers in Shirebrook.”
Football specials praised
for professionalism
North Division special constables have attracted praise for
their demeanour at Chesterfield Town FC’s opening game
of the 2017/18 season against Grimsby.
The specials, led by S/Sgt James Hopkinson, were
deployed to the north east corner of the ground to assist
in the policing of the game. The specials engaged in a
friendly manner with both home and away fans.
At half time, an away fan who was drunk
had to be ejected from the stadium.
The man was very irate and specials
were instrumental in bringing calm
to the situation. Ultimately, he
was convinced to leave the area
rather than face arrest.
12
“
Inspector Rob Bowns said:
You have contributed to
the policing of a high-
risk football match where
the Dedicated Football
Officer described some
fans as possibly the most
challenging in the country.
You engaged with these
fans in a professional
manner and ensured a safe
and friendly environment
for all involved.
”