Hampshire police officers get on their bikes for charity

HAMPSHIRE Federation Chair Zoe Wakefield is getting on her bike for charity.

She and five other Hampshire officers will be taking part in the Police Unity Tour this weekend to remember fallen colleagues and raise cash for COPs (Care of Police Survivors).

The Hampshire team will be pedalling from Hungerford, where they’ll be joined by colleagues from Thames Valley Police, before heading off to the National Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The three-day, 180-mile journey culminates in the COPS Service of Remembrance, where officers from across the country meet to remember those killed on duty.

Zoe said the annual occasion is an important fundraiser and a way to remind families who have lost loved ones that they are still part of the police family.

“We’ll be cycling all day Friday, all day Saturday and then Sunday morning to get to the National Arboretum,” Zoe said.

“It’s a wonderful way to remember fallen colleagues, and it’s so important for the families to know that their loved ones will never be forgotten and that they are still part of the extensive police family.”

The marathon ride will take in the Williams Formula One HQ before heading to the Thames Valley Police HQ South in Kidlington and onto Milton Keynes. There, the team will meet up with cyclists from other forces, including the Met.

On Saturday morning, the cyclists will form a large peloton on their way to Tamworth with police motorcyclist outriders to keep them safe and stop traffic.

Then it’s the short pedal on Sunday to the National Memorial Arboretum for the COPS Annual Service of Remembrance.

Every cyclist is taking part in memory of a fallen officer from Hampshire, and each of them is raising at least £400 each for the COPS charity.