Kris Aves was hit by a car in 2017 and woke up from a coma paralysed. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
Former police officers who had to leave their roles due to injury have said they feel as if they have been thrown on the “empty pile” without recognition as they fight for a medal to mark their years of service. Campaigners say the Government has not done enough since it was elected last year, and are baffled as to why the commendations have not yet been introduced. The lower half of Kris Aves’ body is now paralysed after being mowed down by a terrorist during an attack on Westminster Bridge and at the Houses of Parliament in 2017.
He can remember turning up at Scotland Yard, receiving an award, having some pictures taken and having coffee with “the top brass”, before he and a couple of colleagues decided that they’d go back to Lambeth Police Station, get changed, and maybe go out for a beer and a burger to celebrate. “That’s where it kind of all went wrong,” Kris said. “My last memory was coming down the lift at New Scotland Yard, and the next was probably eight days later after waking up from a coma.”
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Kris was left paralysed after the incident eight years ago. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
Kris picked up an award before being rammed by a terrorist. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
Originally from Essex, Mr Aves spent his younger years “gallavanting” working overseas in places like Greece and Spain, before wanting to settle down.
Following in the footsteps of his great grandfather, who was a Met officer, serving the people of the UK’s capital was going to be his “job for life”.
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But this was tragically cut short. “I loved it,” Kris said. “The camaraderie of the team, everything. No day is the same as well; it was brilliant.”
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He added: “Everything got taken away from us. All the people who are here today, it was very similar [for them]... Yes, we didn’t die that day, but our careers died.”
Mr Aves added that he was lucky to have been supported by the Metropolitan Police Service with his injuries, but he “did not get anything to say well done, a recognition.
“You get a certificate to say you’ve done a certain amount of years, and now you’re medically retired, but that’s it.
“If you joined the military, and you did one tour of Afghanistan or Iraq, something like that, after 18 months, you still get something to show for that.”
Mr Aves cannot fathom why it is taking so long to roll out. “It’s not going to cost a lot of money,” he said. “It would mean a lot.”
Lucy Hutley, 50, served as a detective constable in Essex before a civilian drove into the back of her unmarked car in 2015, and has since had seven major surgeries due to neck, spinal and hip issues.
She said: “I cried the day my warrant card went. I lost everything.
“They left you to deal with how you are, and what you aspired to be, it’s just gone.
“It was all I’d ever wanted to do, it was in the family. My dad was in the police force in Sussex. I wanted to follow in his footsteps. Which, obviously, I did. It was going to be a lifelong career for me. Through no fault of my own, I’ve ended up injured.”
Ms Hutley was just six months short of her long service and good conduct medal after 20 years’ service.
Lucy Hutley was injured while driving an unmarked police car. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
“It’s been really hard to face that when they turn up, they just come and take your warrant card and wave you goodbye, and that’s about it,” she said.
“I had every intention of doing my full career, probably, if not, even stay on until after retirement age as well.
“And I’m still young - I’m left to deal with the consequences of the accident as well.”
“We all put our life and soul into the role of a police officer. It’s born into you. It’s bred into you, and that’s all you want to do.
“It really does take special people, I think, to do the job. Just to have that slight bit of recognition that you’re not just put on the empty pile because you can no longer do the job through something that’s not your own choice, it’s just really important, I think.”
Recognition would be “amazing”, Ms Hutley said, and would mean that “they finally see us”.
In 1989, Paul Jones, 60, was in the passenger side of a police car to attend a stubble fire at Epping Forest Country Club.
The young driver clipped a kerb while travelling on blue lights and sent them flying into a leylandii border hedge roof first.
His spine was crushed, and Paul was left paralysed from the chest down.
He has no recollection of five days in hospital, including time on life support, before being flown to Stoke Mandeville Hospital for rehab.
Ms Hutley served with Essex Police. (Image: Lucy Hutley)
Paul Jones was injured while on duty in the 1980s. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
“Very few people, I think, know what it feels like to be issued with a warrant card, to carry it every day of your life for the time that you’re in service, and to have to give it back, and what that means to you.
“It means a lot because you’re proud to wear the uniform and proud to serve. When it’s removed, and you’re not given anything in its place, of course, recognition would be nice, because you’ve not only given up your career, there’s all sorts of aspirations and esprit de corps that go with it.
“After 36 years, to receive some sort of recognition more than anything else I think would be quite nice.”
Mr Jones added: “This could have been done years ago. It certainly would have meant more to me when I was younger, because you rage against it for a little while, and then you do what most people do with anything that’s traumatic, you pack it into a box, like we were taught, and don’t return to it.”
Paul says he wants recognition after 36 years. (Image: Paul Jones)
Former Sussex police officer Tom Curry, 75, has lashed out at the Government over the delay, saying that his proposal was formally advanced to the Home Office in May 2024 by the then Conservative administration.
He added: “Following the General Election in June 2024, the role was taken over by Labour's Dame Diana Johnson.
“Since that point, there has been no measurable progress in advancing the proposal… Over the past year, Dame Diana has consistently failed to acknowledge her role in this process.
“In responses to parliamentary questions and in correspondence with MPs who have lobbied on behalf of the campaign, her replies have been evasive, ambiguous, and lacking transparency.”
The Express has contacted Dame Diana for comment.
Liberal Democrat MP for Cheadle Tom Morrison has actively supported Mr Curry’s campaign.
He said: “Our emergency service workers put their lives on the line to keep us safe. When they suffer life-changing injuries in the line of duty, the very least we can do is recognise their sacrifice.”
He added: “Many of the officers involved in the campaign served with distinction for years, only to be forced into early retirement due to injuries sustained while protecting the public.
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Paul Jones was injured when his police car crashed. (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
Despite their bravery and sacrifice, they received no formal recognition or lasting support. Their stories are powerful, often heartbreaking, and highlight the urgent need for change. These are not just statistics — they are men and women who dedicated their lives to public service and now deserve the nation’s thanks."
Tory MP Matt Vickers, Shadow Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire, told The Express that the situation is “madness”, and recognition for former officers is a “no brainer”.
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When asked why the Conservatives did not make it a reality, Mr Vickers said “progress was being made, but all of a sudden it seems to have spent a year in the wilderness”.
A Government spokesperson said: “This government recognises the courage of emergency service personnel injured in the line of duty.
“That is why the Policing Minister has met with stakeholders to discuss the introduction of medals and is paying close attention to this campaign.”
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