IT'S a dirty job ... but someone's got to do it. A community support officer who helped track down a man who was defecating outside a family home has received an award from Sussex Police.

Sophie Hughes, a police community support officer, received a divisional commendation in a ceremony held at the Hove Cricket Ground on June 6

At the time of the incident, the family, with young children in Colbourne Road, Hove, had been finding faeces up to "several times a week".

They installed £600 CCTV in an attempt to solve the mystery and finally contacted the police after suffering for two years.

 

“I think they’d just had enough and wanted to find out who was doing this,” said Ms Hughes. “A lot of the work we were involved with was ensuring there was visibility from officers in the area and providing reassurance to the community.”

“It was incredibly distressing for [the family],” she added.  “I think they just wanted to make sure the person received the help they obviously needed.

“When we found out who this person it was clear they were suffering from severe mental health issues.

“As a result, no further action was taken against the person responsible. The family were very supportive of the action that was taken against this person.”

READ MORE: Hove family catch rogue diarrhoea pooer on CCTV