Suffolk man awarded Imperial Service Medal

Her Majesty the Queen has awarded one of Britain’s highest commendations, the Imperial Service Medal to Gordon Landles a retired civil servant from Brandon in Suffolk in recognition of his long and loyal service. Gordon was employed for over 32 years at Cefas, the Centre of Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, part of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in Pakefield, Lowestoft. The award medal was presented to Gordon in a ceremony at the Cefas Laboratory by Mark Farrar, Cefas’ Chief Executive, on Wednesday 28 September, before a large gathering of his former friends, colleagues and family members.

The ceremony commenced with an introduction by Mike Ives-Keeler, the Head of Human Resources, followed by the Chief Executive’s speech and presentation of the medal. Gordon Landles received this prestigious award for over 25 years of exemplary Government service having been commended for two quite distinct reasons. Gordon was a qualified Civil Service Occupational Health & Safety First Aid Training Instructor and a First Aid Trainer with the British Red Cross. He used his expertise and wide experience of real situations, to train dozens of staff members in First Aid at Lowestoft and the other two laboratories in Burnham, Essex and Weymouth in Dorset. Gordon had an almost 100% pass rate. His training abilities matched his knowledge and practical experience.

Secondly, he never let First Aiding keep him from his main work duties of Chief Messenger at the Lowestoft Laboratory. He could always be relied upon to create a first class impression to all visitors. It was also typical of Gordon’s enthusiasm to ensure that the Union Flag was flown from the Laboratory’s flagstaff on all appropriate days through the year, often entailing his coming to the Laboratory out of hours to fulfil this function.

In 1999 Gordon was transferred from the Messenger’s section and joined the Health and Safety Team where he continued to use his various training skills.

Gordon’s initial reaction to the news of his award was, “I feel very honoured to have been selected for this medal; I must have done something right in my life working at the lab.”

Notes to editors

1. Cefas is an internationally renowned scientific research and advisory establishment, based at Lowestoft since 1902. It also has laboratories at Burnham-on-Crouch and Weymouth, and a number of other facilities around the UK. It became an executive agency of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in 1997.
2. Cefas undertakes work on fisheries management, environmental protection and aquaculture. It offers a wide range of research, advisory, consultancy, monitoring and training activities to government departments (UK and foreign, central and local), international agencies, commercial companies and aid organisations. For more detail see the Cefas website: http://www.cefas.co.uk/.
3. The Imperial Service medal is awarded upon the recommendation of Defra to established civil servants who have had over 25 years meritorious service reckonable for pension. In order to be eligible to receive this award, an officer must have served with diligence and fidelity and must have had good/satisfactory staff reports for the last 15 years of service.
4. The Imperial Service Medal is Silver suspended on a red ribbon with a blue central stripe and is engraved with Gordon Landles name around the rim. On the front face is the Queen’s head and the wording: Elizabeth II DEI GRATIA REGINA F.D. and on the reverse a motif of a naked man resting after work with the legend ‘FOR FAITHFUL SERVICE’. Further information about the Cabinet Honours award system can be found here: - http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/ceremonial/

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