NO BURGLARIES TO REPORT IN THE LAST 48 HOURS !
Whilst I was on Annual leave, some really good news came in !!!
The youth intervention project we manage – ‘The Food Academy’ has just won yet another major award
The Thames Valley Problem Solving Award 2020: Windsor and Maidenhead Food Academy
The Windsor and Maidenhead Food Academy, is an early intervention and engagement initiative, aimed at vulnerable young people within the local police area.
The scheme, initially launched in 2018, works closely with a multitude of stakeholders, to expand the services to those in need of support and diversion.
“In times of austerity, the ability of the team to sustain relationships, attract funding and build community resilience is to be commended.”
Our grateful thanks, to all those who have assisted and supported us. Particularly our brilliant small team of volunteers, who worked with, mentored and helped the young students.
We must also thank those who believed in the project and offered us their full support. ‘The Army Covenant’ funded 6 courses and ‘The Windsor Lions’, funded another. The Windsor Girls School, when we approached them, immediately gave us their brilliant student catering course facilities. Thanks must also go to The Household Cavalry and The Coldstream Guards who offered us their Officers’ Mess along with all their wonderful china, crystal and silver ware, for the banquets at the end of each course. The Royal Windsor Race Course, approached us and offered their dining room and catering facilities for the Banquets and we gratefully accepted.
We had students aged between 13 – 17 years old referred to us, by local schools and partner agencies. The students chosen, often had personal / family / isolation issues to deal with. We wondered how this age range would work together and bond as a team. We need not have worried. Having suffered from similar issues, they immediately understood each other, saw and acknowledged their pain and showed the younger students, coping mechanisms they had developed. The older students, took the younger ones under their wings and let them know that as bad as they felt their current situation was, with the right help and support – it would get better and they would get though it.
At each session, we had a short break half way through, whilst items were cooking, bread was rising etc. We looked at the issues our students had and organised support sessions from local partner agencies, to address and offer professional confidential support. Often, it was the first time, the students realised, this type of support was available.
Each course was a very emotional experience for us all, to see very timid and insecure young people turn up on day one, to a room full of strangers and over a period of 7 weeks, absolutely grow, open up and blossom into confident young people. Getting to know, supporting, and sharing experiences with others – developing a supportive network of friends.
The culmination of each course, was a Black Tie, three course VIP Banquet – with canapés. They had to design the menu, prepare and cook everything- using the skills they had learned - for up to 100 guests, which included Councillors, partner agencies, family members and other guests. Police Cadets, did the waiting on. At the end, they were called up individually and had to walk the full length of the dining area, to thunderous applause and then had to go down the VIP line, shaking hands with the Mayor, the Chief Constable, The High Sheriff and other dignitaries, to receive their Certificates. On Session 3 or 4, when we discussed the Banquet with the students, not a single one, ever said they would be able to walk through the dining room on their own ! On the night – they proudly walked through, with heads held high. Parents, volunteers and people who had visited sessions, in tears. Parents would come up afterwards to thank us and say they could not believe the change in their child since attending the course. We have had some amazing successes. The students, often had found schoolwork challenging, but now they find they have a talent, they were praised for something they did well – they were good at something and their confidence grew. Many would go on to study catering at college.
The current course, was suspended by the Covid lockdown, but we hope it will resume soon.
We have two videos you can watch on YouTube which outlines the project:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuAV5Pei4VIand our award video:
https://youtu.be/VfQfdX87cVoNEXT: A member of our Geographic Neighbourhood Team, has won yet another award - Berkshire PCSO of the year. PCSO David Bullock a member of the Windsor Town Centre Geographic Neighbourhood Team – is now a repeat winner, having won this prestigious award several times – and very well deserved !!!
This award, is not an internal thank you from his supervisors, but results from large numbers of members of the public, who take the time and trouble, to write in and recommend him for the award, for the brilliant work he carries out in the community. Everyone who comes across David, or works on projects and initiatives with him, knows this is well deserved. Our congratulations to him and the rest of our Geographic Neighbourhood teams, who do such a really good job.
NEXT: Community SpeedWatch
We are resuming Community SpeedWatch immediately, now that things are opening up. For the time being, we will not be inviting members of the public / NHW members to join us and the RBWM Community Wardens at events. If you believe your road is being used as a rat run and there are speeding cars, please email the details – including time of day and day of the week the offences occur, so that we can target our response to the group email below. I will shortly be creating a dedicated email address for referrals and will let you have it. We already have a list of roads we will be targeting, held over from when Community SpeedWatch was suspended.
It is a wonderful feeling, that at last, things are slowly beginning to return to - more – normal.
FINALLY – I attended the Maidenhead Forum last week and Steph James the Town Centre Manager here, thought that a Borough Wide initiative – ‘Memory Box’ – would be of interest to you all:
Hi Jeff,
I think this project, will be of interest to your members.
‘The Royal Borough Memory Box’ is a project for people who live and work in the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead, to collect and share memories of the pandemic and the lock down.
With their help, ‘Memory Box’ will build a collection, to reflect our community experience, from the highlights of special times with family, to the lows of our darker and sadder days.
Through ‘Memory Box’, everyone can contribute stories, photographs, videos, artworks and any items that represent their personal experiences, of life in lock down.
Together we can tell our shared story and help future generations to understand, what we have experienced.
https://rbwmtogether.rbwm.gov.uk/royal-borough-memory-boxKind Regards
Steph
Steph James
Service Lead for Economic Growth
Place Directorate
Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead
Many thanks Steph – excellent suggestion.
CRIME
I have attached reference numbers to each crime report. If you live in the vicinity of any of the crimes mentioned and have CCTV or a video doorbell, can you please check the footage. If you have any that might be of interest to the police, can you please make contact with us, quoting reference number given.
I have added a new email address below. The first email address is directly to your local Neighbourhood Team. The second is to our investigation team. Please use it to send any intelligence / video doorbell / CCTV footage you may have, which is relevant to any of the crimes lists below - quoting the reference number.
Alternatively you can call 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or email -
www.crimestoppers-uk.orgMAIDENHEAD CENTRAL:
maidenheadcentralgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk6/4 – 7/4 Tuesday 8 p.m. / Wednesday 7 a.m. Collier Close. Car driver’s window smashed – vandalism. Ref. No: 43210145036
5/4 Monday 2.55 p.m. Station Approach. Locked up bike stolen from a bike rack. A black and red, road bike. Ref. No: 43210142661
RIVERSIDE & BELMONT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
MAIDENHEAD WEST
maidenheadwestgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukBISHAM, COOKHAM, HURLEY, THE WALTHAMS, LITTLEWICK GREEN & KNOWL HILL:
6/4 Tuesday 6.30 p.m. / 7 p.m. Butchers Lane, White Waltham. While out for a walk, the owner returned to find their car broken into and a mobile phone and spare car keys stolen from the centre console. Ref. No: 432102144693
PINKNEYS GREEN & FURZE PLATT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
MAIDENHEAD SOUTH
maidenheadsouthgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukBOYN HILL, COX GREEN & WOODLANDS PARK:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
OLDFIELD, BRAY & HOLYPORT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
