Commissioner updates on police memorabilia auction

As a result of that work, a number of historically-significant items have been retained by North Yorkshire Police and will be on display at their new headquarters at Alverton Court in Northallerton.  For those items not being retained, local museums have been approached and have identified items of interest, which have been donated to them.  Attempts have also been made to contact officers, staff or their families, as well as liaising with the National Association of Retired Police Officers, who have ties to certain objects.

Those items which weren’t retained or donated were due to be sold at auction in recent weeks and months.  The first auction was held on 30 January 2018, and after six auctions altogether, 112 items have been sold.  21 items are still to be sold at future auctions.  To date, the value of items sold comes to £4,370. £140 was raised from the sale of a clock and has been allocated to Cancer Research at the request of the family of the officer whose name is inscribed on the item.  As the auction company charge a fee of 5%, this has meant £4,018.50 has been raised so far. The next auction is scheduled for 29 May.

Any money raised from the sale of the items will be donated equally to the Police Treatment Centre and the North Yorkshire Police Welfare Fund.  This however will be following the sale of the remaining 21 items.

Julia Mulligan, elected Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire said: “Sadly not all our historic items were able to be retained because there simply isn’t space to store them all at our new headquarters. It is a similar picture at local policing museums who just weren’t able to take all the items they would have liked.

“I am pleased though that the sale of those items which weren’t able to be kept has been over £4,000, with some items yet to be sold. Whilst I will be waiting for a grand total before donating any of the proceeds, I have decided to split any money raised between the Police Treatment Centre, based in Harrogate, and the North Yorkshire Police Welfare Fund.  It seems only right that past and present officers get some benefit from the sale of these items.”