Cream of police staff crop recognised with national awards

Yesterday (4 March 2026) saw the announcement of this year’s national Police Staff Award winners at an event held as part of the 2026 Police Staff Week of Celebration and Recognition. 

This national celebration, first established in 2024 by the national Senior Police Staff Network (SPSN), brings together police forces and associated policing bodies in recognising the breadth of the work and roles police staff undertake daily and celebrates their place in the wider policing family.  

At yesterday’s SPSN Conference, held at the College of Policing, colleagues from across policing gathered to celebrate those who had truly gone above and beyond in the course of their duties, and in service to their communities. 

Nominated by their colleagues and with a theme of 'Police Staff: Past Present and Future', the awards acknowledged how truly central police staff are to the service. 

Assistant Chief Officer Gemma Stannard, Head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council Strategic Hub and Alexis Poole, Devon and Cornwall Police Assistant Chief Officer – People are the founding members and Joint Chairs of the SPSN.  

ACO Stannard said: 

“There are over 80,000 members of police staff across England and Wales carrying out a huge variety of roles. 

"As policing has changed over the years, so too has the importance of police staff and their contribution to the policing mission. This week is all about reflecting on and celebrating the work of police staff past and present as well as looking ahead and recognising the continued importance of police staff in delivering policing. 

"Congratulations to all the winners of the national Police Staff Awards and thank you to all of our police staff colleagues for the incredible work you do each and every day on behalf of all of our communities."

ACO Poole said:

“It is wonderful to see colleagues from across the country being recognised for the vital contributions they make to the policing mission, whether they’ve just started their policing careers or have been in service for many years. 

"Each of the winners of this year’s awards has demonstrated dedication and professionalism in their roles, whether they are in frontline operational teams or providing the critical support needed to deliver policing to communities and keep people safe. 

"Well done to everyone that has been nominated for or won one of this year’s awards – this is an incredible achievement and underlines the skill, bravery, expertise and pride being displayed by police staff colleagues every day. Quite simply, policing couldn’t happen without them.” 

There were seven categories in this year’s Police Staff Awards , looking at every aspect of the police staff role.  Winners included: 

Police Staff Member of the Year – Jayne Ecott, Bedfordshire Police: for her work in improving welfare and wellbeing.  

Police Staff Team of the Year – Kent Victim & Witness Care Team, for their dedication and professionalism in supporting victims and witnesses of crime in Kent through the court process. 

Police Staff Unsung Heroes - Neelam Shiraz, Community & Diversity Officer, Thames Valley Police & Suzann Else, Investigative Support Officer, West Yorks Police. For their unswerving dedication to improving their areas of work for the people in their communities. 

New Police Staff Member – John Banks, Data Office, Durham Constabulary. For his work in developing a new data and business intelligence portal and improving data quality.  

Police Staff Bravery Award – Jason (Jay) Miller, PCSO, Northumbria Police. For placing himself in harm’s way to prevent an armed offender from escaping arrest. 

Police Staff Ally of the Year Award – T/DS Ahmed Wahab, British Transport Police. For championing the inclusion, development and recognition of police staff. 

Police Staff Lifetime Achievement Award – Paul Fenne, Metropolitan Police. For his role in providing officers and staff across London with protective equipment.