Police and Crime Commissioner Angus Macpherson has been made an MBE in the Queen’s birthday honours list for services to the community in Wiltshire.
The Cabinet Office says the award of Member of the Order of the British Empire is given “for an outstanding achievement or service to the community… which will have had a long-term, significant impact and stand out as an example to others”.
Mr Macpherson was elected as the first Police and Crime Commissioner for Wiltshire and Swindon in November 2012 and re-elected in 2016.
Before becoming PCC he was a lead member of the old Wiltshire Police Authority for seven years from 2005 to 2012.
In 1992 he was appointed to the Wiltshire magistrates bench and served in Swindon where he was a senior chairman in the adult court. He was a long-serving member of the policy committee and led several local consultations on sentencing guidelines.
In addition to his voluntary work as a magistrate, he also served as a borough councillor, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
Mr Macpherson is a former chairman of Threshold Housing Link and has run the Filling Station, a charity which works to feed homeless people on the streets of Swindon, for many years. It provides a weekly soup kitchen from a car park in the town centre which offers not just soup but hot dogs, hot drinks, sandwiches, blankets, clothes, toiletries, support and advice. He regularly takes his turn driving the Filling Station van.
His close involvement with the two charities, and his work in the courts, has given him insights into drug and alcohol issues and the need to tackle the cycle of re-offending.
In 2001 he became treasurer of Wiltshire Community Foundation and between 2006 and 2015 he was a trustee. This was a period of exceptional growth for the foundation. The endowment rose from about £2m to £18m and grant giving from £257,000 to more than £1m a year.
He is married to Sara-Jane and lives near Swindon. The couple have two grown-up children, James and Charlotte,
Mr Macpherson said: “It is a great honour to be recognised with this award and I feel very proud. I would like to express my grateful thanks to Sara-Jane and my family for all their support which is greatly appreciated.
“I believe the award reflects the hard work and commitment of the many people who give up their time in Wiltshire and Swindon for the common good.
“I have in mind the band of volunteers who turn out in all weathers for the Filling Station, caring for some 50 or so men and women who are sleeping on our streets.
“Similarly the men and women who dispense justice in a voluntary capacity as magistrates in our courts.
“Most of all, I believe this honour reflects on the outstanding men and women of Wiltshire Police who help to keep us safe in their roles as police officers and police staff.”
