I'm the community police officer in Savile Town in Dewsbury. We faced a major problem here after the 7/7 bombings when a young lad from the area was arrested.

The counter-terrorism unit cordoned off streets around Savile Town - people had restricted access to the streets and this went on for about a week, so there were a lot of irate people.

I had to be a bridge and communicate between the police and the community, because I knew that after the counter-terrorism unit had gone, I was still going to have to turn up on a daily basis and face the community.

We spoke to the imams and committees of the mosques, who then put messages out on their broadcasts. A lot of the houses in and around Savile Town are linked with a radio at home because they listen in to the prayers. So the women who had children and were at home heard the messages first-hand, and it wasn't third-party gossip.

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The international media descended on Savile Town and were intruding in people's lives, so it was a very nervous time, plus we had the BNP on the rise. Luckily for us, nothing got out of hand and the police controlled it pretty well with the help of the community.

We learnt a lot from those arrests. Now, rather than shutting off streets and annoying the whole community, we do it as quickly and as quietly as possible.

We've also had to deal with a major incident where a teaching assistant at a school in Savile Town refused to remove her veil. I had to mediate between the media, who were camping outside, the school and the parents.

Being a Muslim and an Asian myself, I feel that I have a good understanding of the culture and the religion in the community. That's been more helpful than anything else. I know how they feel when they say it's our culture and our religion that people are attacking. But from my perspective, I have to be professional about it all as well.

One person's actions can stain a whole community really, but I think people are getting on with their lives.

I'm like an outreach worker now. I work with schools, colleges and local community centres, trying to build confidence and trust, looking into why these things happen with some of these young guys, and trying to prevent it.

PC Mohammed Aziz won the Community Police Officer of the Year award at the Jane's Police Review Gala Awards in 2007 for his work on easing tensions in Savile Town. Judges for this award considered personal skills, local initiatives to combat crime and relationships with the community.

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Public Agenda is a media partner of the awards, which recognise and reward excellence in policing in the UK. Other awards were given to recognise student police officers, community support officers,

diversity and lifetime achievement. Nominees were put forward by constabularies in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In 2007, 46 forces were represented.

This year's event will be held on November 13 in London.

www.janes.com/events/awards/policereview

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