A police officer has been dubbed “Britain’s kindest cop” after he was captured on video helping a lost blind man in a busy city centre.
Heartwarming footage shows PC Matt Waite taking the man by the arm and guiding him along Worcester High Street on Monday morning (16/5).
The 44-second clip was filmed by shopper Jamie Knight, 42, after he saw the blind shopper bump into the glass window of Debenhams.
The officer can be seen coming to the disorientated man’s aid and leading him across the pedestrianised street to his intended destination, Barclays bank.
Jamie, who works as a festival promoter and singer/songwriter, said he was so moved by the act of kindness he decided to share the footage on his Facebook page.
Posting the video, he wrote: “Just walking through Worcester and saw this.
“Police always seem to get a bad wrap. This is a policeman helping a blind man find his way. Thank you.”
The video has now been viewed more than 139,000 times and has been shared 592 times with one user Bal Singh commenting: “This has to be Britain’s kindest cop“.
Jamie, who lives with his wife and four children in Barbourne, Worcester, said: “It was a very touching moment.
“Before I knew it, the policeman had gone to his aid and was at his side walking him from Debenhams, along the street and to the bank.
“At that moment I thought it was a lovely act of kindness and thought people would realise it is simple to be kind and thoughtful.
“I thought it was important for people to see that police officers don’t just catch criminals but do these type of things too.
“I think they do an amazing job – what kind of world would we live in if it wasn’t for police?
“It’s not just the job, I thought his actions said a lot about him too as well as for all the police in Worcester.”
Supt Kevin Purcell, from West Mercia Police, said: “At a time when, rightly, policing shortcomings are identified and raised, it is so nice to see PC Matt Waite doing something so simple, yet so kind.
“The tender and caring way he does this says so much about him, our police and what police do which goes unnoticed every day of the week.
“The city centre team he is part of are there to prevent crime, stop anti-social behaviour and protect people.
“A great example of the latter.”
Sergeant Carl Jones, from Worcester Safer Neighbourhood Team, added: “The city centre policing team in Worcester deal with offenders on a daily basis.
“Our officers provide a visible presence that reassures shoppers and traders and they are one of the main reasons why we have such a safe city centre.
“I know that the team helps vulnerable people every day, and it often goes unnoticed – which is why I appreciate the footage of PC Matt Waite assisting this man.
“I hope the footage shows people that the traditional ‘Beat Bobby’ is alive, well and clearly very visible in the city of Worcester”.
