A police officer who talked a man into releasing a nine-week-old baby he was holding at knifepoint is among those honoured with a bravery award from chief constable Jo Farrell. PC Alana Whitby persuaded Scott Bradbury to surrender during an armed police siege after he attacked a woman at a flat in Edinburgh and held the child hostage last June. Bradbury was later jailed for five years.
Whitby, based in Edinburgh, accepted the Bravery and Excellence Award on Thursday but was quick to credit her colleagues in the Armed Response Police and the Counter Terrorism Specialist Firearms Unit. She said: “In a moment defined by fear and uncertainty, my focus was on remaining calm, protecting life, and working alongside an amazing team to help achieve the safest outcome. None of this was done alone.”
Other winners included PC Kevin McGhee, who forced entry to a smoke-filled flat where a stabbing suspect was refusing to leave. He was met with billowing smoke, intense heat, and extremely reduced visibility. That takes a particular kind of courage that is easy to admire from a safe distance and much harder to summon when you are actually standing outside the door.
Sergeant Paul Tomkinson won an Excellence Award for Cut and Connect, a free mobile hairdressing service that also provides wellbeing checks, conversations, and links to services including recovery support and domestic abuse help. PC Scott McCulloch was named police officer of the year for developing a domestic abuse lesson pack he has delivered to more than 4,000 secondary school pupils in West Lothian.
Even Police Horse Cathcart got a mention, receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award after 13 years of distinguished service. The chief constable said: “Accounts of how our people show up and stand up for, and with, our communities can be a source of energy and pride for policing in Scotland.” On the evidence of this lot, she has a point.