Perenjori Sgt Nathan Good receives recognition at WA Police Excellence Awards for work in blue light unit

A Mid West police officer has been honoured for his work in helping keeping youth in the small town of Perenjori engaged and out of trouble through the blue light unit. Perenjori police station officer in charge Sgt Nathan Good was awarded in the individual community engagement category at the 2023 9News WA Police Excellence Awards on Tuesday. Sgt Good received multiple nominations for his hard work within the blue light unit, run by WA Police in remote areas where there is no PCYC centre. Sgt Good’s commitment to creating a safer and more united community, partnered with his outlook on policing, earned him the award. “I was in absolute shock. I certainly wasn’t expecting it and it’s really nice to get that recognition for the stuff that we do,” he said. Sgt Good encourages teenagers who are heading down the wrong path to get back on the straight and narrow through community engagement and events such as discos, arts and craft activities, laser tag and excursions. “Community engagement starts with every interaction that we have, so it’s always a good place to start off with people just through meet-and-greets,” he said. WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said 181 nominations were received for the awards and “every submission told a compelling story of exceptional service, care and duty”. “The nominations demonstrated the many and varied ways WA Police Force officers go above and beyond to serve, protect and engage with the community,” he said. Award winners were chosen for their excellence in their service to people in their policing role, represented WA Police Force values and raised the public’s confidence in policing. Other winners included Sgt Andy Coen from the rapid apprehension squad for innovation in policing, Margaret River’s Sgt Simone Taplin for operational performance, the Balgo multi-function police facility for team community engagement, the sex crime division for team innovation in policing and the transnational serious organised crime squad for team operational performance. Each winner received $2000.