Police World Edition 4 2014

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From Strength to Strength Chris Charlton, Secretary of Scarborough branch, reports on another enjoyable branch twinning get together. I n May, Scarborough branch members, Judith Smith and Mark Faunt, and Bolton branch member Bill Lloyd met with members of story goes that at the end of the visit, Her Majesty asked when she would see the horses. Alas, the refreshments, and brief introductions to the Regional Committee and the Section Germany National President, Horst W. Bichl, we joined a guided tour of the historic city.

Royal visit had been made to the wrong town because the horses were at the famous Marbach Stud – about 150 kilometres away. Although the veracity of this anecdote is doubtful, it is often retold! Marbach, a beautiful mediaeval town is known as the birthplace of the classical poet and dramatist, Friedrich Schiller. The walled town has a picturesque centre with several churches and many historical houses, including the house in which Schiller was born. After lunch, we went on a guided tour on foot through the town which included a visit to a local brewery and a small schnapps distillery. The evening was taken up with a scientific event put on by a drink driving awareness group. We

Ludwigsburg branch - Scarborough’s twin branch. Following the successful twinning between the two Branches in 2013, Dieter Bart, the Chair of IPA Landesgruppe Baden-Württemberg (Region), had invited a small delegation from Scarborough to Baden-Württemberg to join the festivities at the Grand Police Benefits Gala in Esslingen, Germany. First on the agenda of a busy weekend was a visit to the police station in Marbach am Neckar where Ludwigsburg branch Chair, Peter Kolwe, is Chief of police. During a typical working lunch, Peter showed us a folder that contained the detailed plans drawn up by the local police for a visit to the town on 24 May 1965 of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The

After a sumptuous evening meal, together with the 300 guests, we listened to music played by the State Police Orchestra of Baden-Württemberg - which played a wonderful range of classical and contemporary pieces. We were also entertained by magician Jorgos Katsaros and Crimestop - a local band of police officers. In addition, a total of 5000 Euros was raised in aid of a local hospice. The following morning, we were joined by several members of Ludwigsburg branch before being whisked off for a tour around the nearby Porsche Museum where the phrase ‘child in a sweet shop’ came to mind. Never had I seen so many splendid sports cars under one roof! After a walk through the city of Stuttgart, the evening was spent with local members in a restaurant close to the IPA apartment in Ditzingen where we enjoyed a final convivial meal together. Forming strong professional, cultural and social friendships with police officers in other countries was what Arthur Troop had in mind when he formed his first ideas about what the IPA should stand for. It is part of the Association’s history and Scarborough branch’s friendship with Ludwigsburg is going from strength to strength. As far as we are concerned, it is also part of the future and we very much look forward to hosting and entertaining 22 members from Ludwigsburg when they visit Scarborough in September. Chris Charlton , Scarborough branch

could eat and drink as much as we wanted providing we recorded what we consumed and agreed to be breath tested at intervals during the evening – an interesting method of raising awareness about a very serious issue. The next day, we went to the nearby city of Esslingen am Neckar where the Baden-Württemberg IPA Regional Meeting was taking place. After

State Police Orchestra of Baden-Württemberg

Chris Charlton enjoying a test drive

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POLICE WORLD Vol 59 No. 4, 2014