Special police officers have been publicly thanked for volunteering a total of 3,320 hours over the last 12 months.
Inspector Mark Smith paid tribute to the team of specials based in Blackwood for the donated hours. One officer had out in almost 500 hours of volunteer service.
Special Constabulary Inspector Christine Smith and Special Constable Vicki Morris were also thanked for dedicating significant amounts of time during the year.
Special Constable Dewi Roberts, who alone dedicated 489 hours in the last year and has been a Special Constable with Gwent Police since September 2010. Dewi was thanked along with his colleagues for their contribution to local policing:
Neighbourhood Inspector Mark Smith said: “The Blackwood Special Constables, and Dewi in particular, are highly motivated and have been involved in a number of multi agency operations.
“They have also dealt with some specific incidents that, if they hadn’t been in the locality, the outcome would have been very different. They make a real difference to the area, and in particular their commitment to policing the High Street road closure each Thursday evening and Town-safe operations at the weekend, are examples of their dedication to assist with local policing issues. They are highly valued and we, together with the community, are extremely grateful for their contribution.”
Currently 137 Special Constables work alongside neighbourhood teams throughout the Gwent force area.
Each special constable completes 17 weeks of training which includes law; recording and presentation of evidence; powers of arrests; rights of suspects; self defence and use of force.
They are also given training to help develop confidence in communication skills, problem solving and planning, conflict resolution and incident evaluation.