International praise as Nottinghamshire police officers support major motor sports event

Three officers from the force headed to Assen, Netherlands, to work alongside colleagues from the Dutch Royal Police during the annual Motorcycle TT Festival.

The event, referred to as the ‘Cathedral of Speed’ by motorcycle racing fans around the world, is held at the TT Circuit Assen in front of up to 100,000 spectators.

Officers also took part in patrols and community engagement around the city.

Nottinghamshire officers took the opportunity to share best practice with Dutch colleagues and spoke about a number of local initiatives.

Sergeant Mohson Hussain, from the Gedling neighbourhood team, delivered a presentation to students and Government representatives about the problem solving work he has spearheaded around shoplifting and the use of criminal behaviour orders (CBOs) to tackle persistent offending.

Police Constable Daniel Snowdon delivered a presentation on the force’s successful Cadets programme to students at the CS Vincent van Gogh School, helping to highlight the career pathways into policing for the next generation.

Nottinghamshire Police, Nottingham Trent University, and the City of Assen have now held a tri-collaboration for 22 years during which time our officers annually attend Assen (the majority of the trip being funded by the City of Assen) sharing knowledge, skills, and ideas.

Project lead Sergeant Mark Westlake said: “It’s always positive to be able to share our work and best practice with overseas colleagues and the visit to Assen is a great opportunity for both forces to learn and develop.

"The evolution of the project to be more focused on specific departments each year ensures bespoke learning opportunities for Nottinghamshire officers while in the Netherlands.

“The well-established collaboration continues to go from strength to strength and is hugely beneficial to everyone involved.”

Sergeant Hussain said: “The opportunity for educational and community engagement was extremely positive and this type of activity remains a fundamental aspect of policing.

“The public were able to interact positively with the ‘British Bobbies’ and were able to speak to the officers about the differences in policing. It was also a very rewarding experience for all the officers involved.

“The most significant reminder for me has been a wonderful reminder that the ‘British Bobby’ tradition is still valued and respected across the world.”