AN AWARD-winning Harlow police cadet has been praised after helping an elderly lady who had fallen over.

Head Cadet Harry Beavis, who’s 16-years-old, was heading home after popping to the shops in Harlow when he saw an elderly woman on the floor.

He rushed over to her and asked if she was ok and explained he was a Volunteer Police Cadet with Essex Police. After checking for any injuries, he walked the woman home to ensure she got there safely.

Harry said: “I wasn’t willing to leave someone in difficulty and didn’t think twice about helping. I’m glad she wasn’t hurt from the fall.

“Since joining the cadets, my confidence has really grown and I feel able to help in situations like this. When I first joined, my confidence was quite low and being on the autistic spectrum made it more difficult. I did a lot of shadowing with officers and PCSOs, I’ve been to more than 150 incidents and have had to get involved in helping my colleagues, which has taken a lot of confidence to deal with this things.

“Anything can be done even if you have a disability, no matter how big or small the problem is, there’s always a way around it”

Harry has been a Volunteer Police Cadet for two and a half years in Harlow. Last year, he volunteered almost 200 hours throughout the year and as Head Cadet, he helps to lead a team of almost 30 cadets. He was shortlisted for Cadet of the Year Award in last year’s Essex Police Awards. He was also voted Outstanding Cadet in his unit during last year’s annual Volunteer Police Cadet parade.

In July 2018, Harry gave a Tedx Talk at his school in Harlow about how being a Volunteer Police Cadet has really helped him grow his confidence and excel in life.

You can watch Harry’s talk here: https://youtu.be/QuILARiQmRU

The Volunteer Police Cadets (VPC) scheme is a uniformed voluntary youth organisation, supported by the police, and open to young people aged 13-18 from across the UK’s diverse communities, irrespective of their background or financial circumstances, and including those vulnerable to crime or social exclusion.

Our units will be looking for new recruits throughout the year, for further information about the scheme or to submit your expression of interest, please contact: [email protected] or visit www.essex.police.uk/cadets
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