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Michael Mouse visits Cornwall Wilf Rickard, Cornwall Branch We recently hosted a visit in Cornwall of a Twinning Association, between a local council in Northern Germany and the old Restormel Council (now Cornwall Council).

T he Chair of the association in Germany is a retired Police Officer and has been an IPA member for 41 years. It was their turn to visit the Newquay area, and with them came a new member, Sabine Wieck, who is a Traffic Officer at Heide, just north of Hamburg. As you see from the report, she thoroughly enjoyed herself. We took some photos of Sabine and Dietmar Grein, in their uniforms. When Sabine visited Tony’s home in Wadebridge, she wanted to try on the helmet. We gave it a caption “We have all had customers called Michael Mouse, well here is one who joined the Police”. Back in 1990, a twinning association was formed between Dithmarschen County, in Northern Germany and what was Restormel Council in Cornwall. Since its formation, there have been regular meetings and exchanges between its members. Since 2001, Dietmar Grein has stayed with a friend in Newquay, and visits regularly. He has travelled extensively in Cornwall and has met IPA members in Cornwall. Dietmar became Chairman of the twinning association in Dithmarschen, in 2013. This year, members from Dithmarschen visited Newquay. The necessary travel forms were submitted, and I set about making arrangements for their visit. The party had a programme of events arranged for them during the week. Superintendent Ian Drummond-Smith, at St Austell, very kindly made arrangements with the Traffic department at Bodmin, and on Monday morning, Dietmar and Sabine were collected from their accommodation in Newquay. We took them to Bodmin Police Station, where they visited the various departments including Traffic. The highlight of the day was for them to be taken out on patrol, which they enjoyed immensely. The professionalism and friendship of Devon & Cornwall Police was in the true spirit of IPA. Our sincere thanks go to Ian Drummond-Smith and to Sergeant Ian Richards, at Bodmin. On Tuesday, the group visited the Falmouth area, on a Helford River Cruise. Wednesday saw a Bergfest at Lakeside in Newquay, for a Gala Dinner and concert. Thursday was a visit to Bodmin Jail, which is now a tourist attraction, followed by tea at a Restormel member’s house. On Thursday evening, I with my wife, Marilyn, and Tony Wilce, Cornwall IPA Treasurer, and his wife Sue, travelled to Newquay to visit Sabine. Sadly, Dietmar and his wife already had a prior commitment, so we were unable to meet him. The Chairman of the Restormel Twinning Association, Steven Daniell was also there, as he was very helpful in our arrangements.

We walked to a local pub, where a good meal and a drink or two were enjoyed. We had a lively conversation about policing, the IPA, and my connections with the Hamburg area. Friday was a lovely sunny day, and having enjoyed a full English breakfast Sabine took the ‘ Cornish Coaster’, an open topped double decker along the north Cornwall coast to Padstow. There she was met by Sue and Tony, and shown around the port. A walk along the Camel Trail towards Wadebridge followed, with lunch and a walk around the town of Wadebridge. This being Sabine’s first visit to the UK, she wished to visit a British home, so a short walk took her to their house in Wadebridge. Sabine is a relatively new IPA member, so she was pleased to learn more about our organisation and all it has to offer. She spoke of her day with the Police at Bodmin, the equipment and tech. that they have to hand, which is not available to them in Germany. A frequently used phrase was “It is the same but different” about work and life in general. A view of Tony’s police memorabilia led to a try of a ‘Bobby’s’ helmet. Later she was taken back to Newquay to prepare for her return journey home to Germany. New friendships made and experiences created, in the spirit of the IPA. Sabine has become an ambassador for IPA, and she intends to return to Cornwall next year, along with more colleagues. They will be made very welcome.

POLICE WORLD Vol 69 No.2, 2024

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