Awards handed out by West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner

John Campion thanked 14 people for their actions at an awards ceremony.

Among those to receive an award was 35-year-old Rachel Lawson.

Rachel, a member of the public and a trained workplace first aider, received two Royal Humane Society Awards after performing CPR on 16-year-old stabbing victim Michael Warham who she found collapsed outside her Shrewsbury home in August 2016.

Thanks to Rachel he lived for more than two days and his family were able to say their goodbyes at his bedside.

Declan Graves, 20, from Liverpool was found guilty of his murder last year and sentenced to at least 20 years in prison.

PC Henry King-Salter used his initiative to apprehend the suspect of a series of armed robberies in Oswestry, catching him red handed with the stolen goods. The offender, Carl Cowans, was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

PC Kevin Roberts received an award for his dedication to keeping Shrewsbury Town Centre safe at night time. Last month PC Roberts was given the Malcolm Edmans QPM Award – named in honour of the late National Pubwatch secretary and former Chief Superintendent from the Met.

He was nominated by Shrewsbury Pubwatch and Shrewsbury Business Improvement District (BID) for his “outstanding” effort over the past five years in working with licensed premises and major events to make them as safe as possible.

His work included an emphasis on river safety and helping securing the Purple Flag award – for safe town centres – for three years running.

PC Alice Davies was recognised for her determination, resilience and sound decision making skills when giving CPR to the victim of a motorcycle collision.

Those who deliver the Homeless Outreach Street Triage (HOST) project, and who significantly reduced the numbers of people sleeping on the streets locally were also commended. Notable successes for them included securing accommodation for a man aged 70 who had been homeless for 40 years.

Sergeant Darren Stacey from Telford was recognised for his outstanding work around missing people, which has made West Mercia Police a national leader in this area.

Special Constable Georgina Barnes, who is valued by her colleagues as shift member, volunteering her time, with professionalism, commitment and tenacity was also recognised.

Mr Campion said “It was an honour to attend these awards and to see the outstanding contribution by these and all the other award winners.

"On behalf of our communities, I’d like to thank the award winners and all those individuals who go above and beyond to make West Mercia a place that is safe and feels safe.

"It’s important to remember that there are individuals behind the police uniform, who volunteer their time to do incredible things and I want to ensure that they get the recognition they deserve.”