Volunteers who check on the welfare of detainees in police custody have been presented with long-service awards by Cambridgeshire’s police and crime commissioner, Sir Graham Bright.

Between them, the 24 custody visitors have clocked up a 107 years of service.

Sir Graham handed out 15 long-service awards to the members of the scheme who have served for three years or more.

Sir Graham said: “I want to celebrate and acknowledge the long-service by many custody visitor members and take time to thank them for the commitment they have given to volunteering for this vital role.

“They give up their spare time, often in unsocial hours of the day, to inspect and report on the treatment of detainees held in custody by Cambridgeshire Constabulary.”

The job of the custody visitors is to scrutinise police practice and procedures in police cells across the county and report back to Sir Graham, enabling him to identify any issues or trends that emerge.

The recipient for an award with the longest service was Geoffrey Rogers who has been an custody visitor for 25 years.

Mr Rogers said: “I’m really honoured and surprised to receive this thoughtful award. The scheme means a lot to me and I enjoy supporting the work that the ICV scheme carries out in Cambridgeshire.”