Northumbria PC named Rural Officer of the Year
A PC who works tirelessly to keep Northumbria’s most remote areas safe has been named Rural Officer of the Year.
30-year-old Phil Nash took his up place in the Response Policing Team (RPT) in late 2020, and ever since has impressed senior officers with his ‘can do’ attitude and problem-solving approach.
His speciality is tackling driving offences in rural Northumberland – stationed predominantly out of Berwick-upon-Tweed.
However, the tenacious PC hasn’t always been a North East native, transferring from Norfolk Constabulary in 2020 after moving up the country to start a family.
In the short time he’s been at Northumbria Police, PC Nash has made a big impression on the local community – wracking up a total of 62 years’ worth of disqualifications for offenders through proactivity and dogged police work.
The accolade, won by the PC during an awards ceremony at the end of last month, was a tightly fought competition amongst those deployed to the vast and unpredictable landscape of Northumberland.
PC Nash was nominated by his Sergeant Tracey Brown, who has praised his persistent policing-style which always gets the job done.
She said: “PC Nash has all the attributes of a truly fantastic officer. He’s proactive, reliable, positive and his results clearly speak for themselves.
“Rural policing comes with challenges like nowhere else – it’s truly unique. Phil understands the landscape and communities of his patch and uses that to sculpt his intelligence-led approach which is boosted by his contagious passion for his job.”
Upon receiving the accolade, PC Nash said: “I’m so proud to have won this award, especially having only been an officer for the Force for just under three years. Rural policing is a priority for Northumbria Police – and that’s something I keep at the forefront of my focus every time I’m on shift.
“I love knowing I’m making a real difference to peoples’ lives and helping to keep them safe. I know many may overlook the severity of road offences but the impact and devastation they can have on the lives of victims and families can’t be overstated.
“I’ve made it my mission to ensure everyone can enjoy driving without the added risk from disqualified, unfit, uninsured, or intoxicated drivers by taking them off the roads before anything can happen – and I’m really appreciative this has been recognised by my award.
“Policing rural areas requires a completely tailored approach and has its differences to policing towns and inner cities. The area is so vast, and often the terrain can be difficult to navigate with weather extremes unlike anywhere else in the region.
“And for that reason, it’s really important we use all the information and intelligence we have so we can be as proactive and efficient as possible to disrupt, detect, and deter criminal activity and those who pose a risk to the public whilst we are so far away from the centre of the Force area.”
But would he encourage others to join or transfer to Northumbria?
He said: “The satisfaction I get from this job is like no other. As a transferee from another Force, I’ve built massively on my pre-existing skills which have undoubtedly helped me be the best officer I can be and provide a quality level of service to the local rural communities.
“If you’re looking for a career where you can make a real difference – this is it.”