The office of Police and Crime Commissioner, Michael Lane, shares this latest news. Ed
Police and Crime Commissioner Michael Lane has awarded Hampshire Search and Rescue Dogs £6,401 in funding in order to purchase an incident support vehicle and safety equipment.
Hampshire Search and Rescue Dogs provide nationally qualified search dog teams to support the police when looking for vulnerable, missing people in Hampshire.
They support the emergency services to save lives and keep Hampshire residents safe. They receive multiple calls for assistance from Hampshire Constabulary’s Police Search Advisors team every week.
The voluntary organisation has fundraised for an ‘Incident Support Vehicle’ to deploy to incidents. This vehicle will reduce their response time and help increase the chance of survival of a missing person. In addition to funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner, they have received grant awards from Hampshire County Council, Test Valley Borough Council, and The National Lottery Community Fund.
Keeping people safer must be shared
PCC Michael Lane said:
“Working with local teams is key to my ability to target local priorities and support better outcomes for residents. Keeping people safer is not just a matter for policing but one that must be shared.
“My funding will enable the Search and Rescue Dog Team to work more quickly and effectively to meet that aim.”
Saunders: Vital voluntary service
Kev Saunders, Operations Officer for HSAR Dogs, said,
“We are thrilled to receive this funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner. It allows us to buy our much needed team Incident Support Vehicle. Our team is entirely funded by donations, which enable us to continue our lifesaving work.
“Without these, we’d be unable to train and equip these amazing dogs and people, or to provide such a vital voluntary service to the police.”
Assist other counties
Hampshire Search and Rescue Dogs are called out by the police, coastguard or other emergency Services to search for missing, vulnerable people.
They often work closely with Lowland Search foot teams to search specified areas near to where the missing person was last seen and are directed by a search controller.
Hampshire Search and Rescue Dog team are primarily based in Hampshire although assist other counties’ search teams where resources allow.
