Police Welcome Teddy Bear Recruits

Hundreds of new teddy bear recruits have been welcomed to Nottinghamshire Police – each with a special mission to bring comfort to children in distress.

The cuddly toys have been donated by Teddies for Loving Care, a charity set up to support young children who find themselves in traumatic incidents involving emergency services. Nottinghamshire Police took delivery of its first bears on Monday and will use them to help calm children down or reward them for being brave in stressful situations such as road traffic collisions. The bears, which can also be used to reward children for bravery or to demonstrate procedures, will now be distributed among response officers. Graham Riche, Chairman of Teddies for Loving Care Nottinghamshire, said: “We have been working for some time with the hospitals and Emergency Treatment Centres across Nottinghamshire and are delighted we are now able to support the police as well. "To date 55,000 bears have been issued in Nottinghamshire and 3,000,000 across the UK. Sadly, we know that our emergency services personnel will come into regular contact with children who have either witnessed or been involved in a traumatic incident. “We also know from experience that our bears can and do make a positive difference and I have every confidence that they will make a positive difference to families who come into contact with the police.” Teddies for loving care is funded by Freemasons, their families and supporters. Currently they charity has 47 regional TLC programmes across England and Wales. Deputy Chief Constable Steven Cooper said: “I am delighted to be able to welcome these cuddly new recruits to Nottinghamshire Police and would like to thank everyone at TLC for their support and generosity. “Our officers are already wellprepared for dealing with all manner of traumatic incidents, including those involving children, but will now have an extra tool at their disposal to help them respond in the most appropriate way. “Equally this is a great opportunity for us to build stronger relationships with young people and encourage them to see the police in a more positive light.”