Force plants D of E rose to honour the late Prince Philip and to celebrate police cadets

Leicestershire Police has planted a ‘Duke of Edinburgh’ rose to celebrate its police cadets who are working towards the Duke of Edinburgh (D of E) award and to honour His Royal Highness Prince Philip and his service to the country.

The double-flowered rose was planted in the force’s memorial garden by Chief Constable Simon Cole and Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews on Monday (7 March) with the force’s D of E cadet leaders also in attendance.

Chief Constable Simon Cole said: “I’m thrilled that we’ve got over 100 of our cadets doing the Duke of Edinburgh award this year. It’s a really important award which is about teamwork and working together to make communities better and stronger, and with a bit of outward-bound adventure as well. This rose is to acknowledge that hard work and of course to acknowledge the Duke’s life of service to the country.”

Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews added: “It was a great honour to plant the Duke of Edinburgh rose alongside the Chief Constable, both to commemorate His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, but also to recognise the achievements of the police cadets who are completing their D of E awards this year and in previous years, demonstrating their commitment to society, policing and their communities.”

Leicestershire Police has been licenced to run the Duke of Edinburgh programme since 2016 and has supported a total of 178 police cadets to complete the award so far.

The cadets have been on expeditions all across the United Kingdom, including the Peak District, Lake District, Snowdonia and the Brecon Beacons.

DC Anthony Jones has been instrumental in the set up and the continual running of the D of E programme for the police cadets. He said: “D of E is a huge part of Leicestershire Police’s cadet programme and we’re really proud to have more than 100 cadets doing their bronze, silver and gold awards this year.

“I just want to say a huge thank you to the whole D of E leader team. Without them we wouldn’t be able to deliver such a successful programme, and also thank you to all the young people for volunteering their time to get involved in the award.”

The force offers all of its police cadets the opportunity to complete the D of E award, along with extra cadet camps, exciting volunteering opportunities and trips to Leicester’s German twin-town of Krefeld.

Superintendent Adam Slonecki, lead for the force’s Police Cadets said: “We’re proud to be able to offer such a varied programme to our police cadets. Young people can gain a great deal from their involvement, from building on their own personal confidence and making new friends to helping us make their communities a safer place to live and work. In return we will provide them with training and development, equipping them to become leaders of the future, either within the police service or beyond.”

Applications for Leicestershire Police’s cadet programme will open on Friday 29 April 2022. For more information on the scheme and how to apply, please visit www.leics.police.uk/couldyou.

L-R: Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews, PSV Lesley Kempster, PC Rich Willett, Chief Constable Simon Cole, Sergeant Charlotte Dickens, Superintendent Adam Slonecki and DC Anthony Jones. 

The Duke of Edinburgh rose in Leicestershire Police's memorial garden.