AN OXFORD police officer has been named the Thames Valley Police Student Officer of the Year.

PC Matthew Sulley was nominated by his colleagues and supervisors for his enthusiasm, hard work and for being on par with officers of at least double his length of service.

PC Sulley, 26, worked as an area manager for a national security company before joining Thames Valley Police in June 2006.

He said: "I'm thrilled to have won this award as I always put my best effort into all the work I undertake, and being recognised in this way is great. I think it is also a testament to the hard work of all the people who have trained and helped me through my first two years in policing.

"I'm looking forward to furthering my career and gaining as much experience as possible in a variety of areas. I enjoy the pro-active side of policing and dealing with cases from their start to conclusion."

Sergeant Adrian Thomas, who has been supervising Matthew since he joined his team in April 2007, highlighted two incidents that demonstrate PC Sulley's outstanding abilities.

The first took place when he was attached to the Cowley neighbourhood team. The Neighbourhood Action Group (NAG) identified drug dealing as being a priority in the area. PC Sulley volunteered to assist another officer who had spotted some suspicious activity. He challenged and detained a man, who attempted to assault him. Class-A drugs were found in the man's possession and following a search of an address more than 100 wraps of class-A drugs, uncut heroin and £2,000 in cash were found. Thanks to the prompt actions of PC Sulley the offender pleaded guilty to possession of drugs with intent to supply and received a four year prison sentence.

In another incident his actions saved the life of a man who had cut his own throat. PC Sulley immediately took control of the situation when he was called to the scene, along with other officers, taking hold of the wound in an attempt to stem the flow of blood with his hands. The man would not speak to officers and became so hostile that he threw PC Sulley into a wall, kicking him in the face. PC Sulley managed to grab hold of him, allowing the officers to restrain him so paramedics could administer first aid.

Sgt Thomas said: "PCs Sulley's confidence and abilities are far beyond those expected of his level of service. He is well organised, is a good team player and all his colleagues enjoy working with him. He can be trusted to work with minimal supervision and takes control of situations, leading and directing other officers who may be more experienced than he is.

"His strengths and abilities are on a par with an officer of at least double his length of service and even in the short period of time he has been an officer he has made a real impact on the local police area. I have never worked or supervised a more capable student officer."

The Community Policing Awards gave the public and Thames Valley Police colleagues the opportunity to vote for a member of community policing staff who they think serves the public best. There are five categories in the competition, community police officer, police community support officer, special constable, student officer and volunteer of the year.