EIGHTEEN police officers, two custody assistants and seven members of the public have been commended for their "selfless" acts of bravery.

The two boys and two men, who battled to save 14-year-old Nathan Spiers before he drowned on a fishing trip, were among the 27 recognised for their actions at the South Worcestershire bravery awards.

Many received a Royal Human Society certificate, signed by Princess Alexandra, at the Castle Street presentation on Wednesday.

South Worcestershire Division's acting chief constable Alan Bridge, Worcester's Chief Supt Simon Adams and Supt Rod Reynolds congratulate the men and women for their courage and professionalism.

"I'm delighted to be able to recognise and reflect on the bravery of the officers and members of the public who have been commended, their selfless actions are outstanding" said Chief Supt Adams.

"The dedication and professionalism of the officers is a tribute to the police service, yet not one of the officers commended will consider their actions anything but examples of what they are expected to deliver every day of the year."

Struggle

CITY man Steve Drinkwater and Inspector Garry Higgins were commended for the way they dealt with an assault in Malvern.

Insp Higgins was off-duty with his young daughter when he saw a man being assaulted by youths.

He rushed to help the injured man while monitoring the group and calling police for assistance.

One of the group suddenly became involved in a struggle with another passer-by, and Insp Higgins had to detain one of the offenders while the others were becoming more aggressive.

Steve Drinkwater was driving past with his family and saw what was happening. He went to Insp Higgin's aid, talking to the youths while luring them away.

Police arrived but Mr Drinkwater took time to comfort Insp Higgin's daughter while he explained to police what had happened.

Insp Higgins was awarded a Divisional Commendation while Mr Drinkwater was presented with a Courageous Citizen Award.

Life savers

TWO custody assistants and a sergeant have been commended for saving the life of a prisoner who stopped breathing at Worcester police station.

Last year, Zoe Walters noticed a female prisoner who had been arrested earlier for being drunk and disorderly and assaulting four officers was having trouble breathing.

Sgt Janet Heritage and custody assistant James Whetton joined Zoe in administering first aid, including mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

The woman was taken to hospital and later discharged and returned to custody.

Sgt Heritage received a Chief Constable's Commendation, Zoe Walters a Divisional Commendation and James Whetton a Royal Humane Society Award.

Sgt Sarah Kent and Ray Cook were also praised for their actions when a man had an epileptic fit and stopped breathing in custody. They both gave first aid until he began to breathe again.

Robber confronted

THREE police officers who confronted a robber wielding a meat cleaver at a Worcester hairdressers' have been praised for their actions.

PCs Mick Norton, Mark Price and Richard Oliver were called to His and Her's in Broad Street on Tuesday, March 5, after a man walked in with the cleaver demanding money.

He had held manager Michael Stone captive and threatened to cut off his finger if he did not hand over his gold ring.

The officers, from Worcester Division, managed to wrestle the man to the ground before handcuffing and arresting him.

The offender, James Collins, was charged with robbery and jailed for four-and-a-half years.

Tragic fishing trip

FOUR men were commended for attempting to save the life of 14-year-old boy who drowned on a fishing trip at Broadheath Pools, Lower Broadheath, near Worcester.

The tragedy happened on Monday, July 8, last year as Nathan Spiers and his two friends Jack Woolley and James Waldron packed up their equipment.

Skateboarding fanatic Nathan, from Dines Green, got into trouble after swimming out to retrieve a fishing float.

As he went under the water, Jack called the emergency services and handed the phone to James. He then jumped into the water to try and rescue his friend.

Brothers Paul and Martin Rice, from Selly Oak, Birmingham, who were also fishing, subsequently jumped in to help.

Meanwhile, James talked through what was happening with ambulance control.

Despite their efforts, the trio was unable to find Nathan and have now been recognised for their courage.

Paul, Martin and Jack were awarded a Royal Humane Certificate while James received a West Mercia Constabulary Good Citizen Award at the ceremony on Wednesday.

Freezing waters

ROBERT Jones and Richard Fletcher were commended for trying to save the life of a teenager who died after jumping from a cliff into the freezing waters of a Malvern quarry on Monday, September 2, last year.

The pair had gone to Gullet Quarry with a group of friends before the tragic events that led to the death of 17-year-old Andrew Pedlingham.

The teenager got into difficulty while swimming and the Worcester pair, from Norfolk Close, frantically swam out to help him.

Despite being extremely exhausted, they managed to drag Andrew out of the water and on to the bank.

Unfortunately, Andrew could not be resuscitated by two off-duty paramedics and died shortly after.

Robert and Richard both received certificates for outstanding acts of bravery.