Rye Police run highprofile safety scheme

SPECIAL Constables from across the Rye area played a key role in a high profile road safety operation on the A259 at Rye.
Rye police road safetyRye police road safety
Rye police road safety

The initiative was planned to coincide with Specials Awareness Weekend, a national campaign to raise awareness of the Special Constabulary and the contribution they make to keeping their communities safe and enforcing the law.

Rother’s special constables, who are unpaid volunteers with full time jobs and the same powers as regular police constables, give up their spare time to help police their local community and work alongside their full time police constable, PCSO and police staff colleagues. So far this year specials have given up 60,000 hours of their spare time across Sussex.

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During the recent road safety initiative the specials stopped approximately 50 vehicles and reported 19 people for a range of offences from not wearing a seatbelt to driving whilst using a mobile phone. After the two hour road safety initiative the officers conducted high visibility patrols around the villages of Beckley and Peasmarsh and issued 15 parking tickets in Rye town centre.

Special constable Michael Kynvin said: “I joined Sussex Police as a special constable in June 1996 and have served in Rother district for most of my time as a special. It’s so rewarding volunteering to really make a difference in people’s lives and I’d encourage anyone thinking about volunteer work to seriously consider becoming a special.

“This operation and the subsequent high visibility patrols is just one of many initiatives we get involved in as special constables. Our job is to help make our communities safer and to aid full time colleagues in dealing with local priorities, such as illegal parking and road safety.

“It was disappointing to see the number of people not wearing seatbelts and I would like to take this opportunity to enforce the importance of belting up when in a vehicle.”

Sergeant Warren Downs said: Specials are invaluable.”

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