King’s Birthday Honours List: Dunstable man ‘humbled’ after getting BEM for Luton’s pest control service

Dave Porter, 52, has been at the council for 22 years, leading their pioneering approach to pest control and dog warden management in the town, helping them to win numerous awards for sustainability and animal welfare.

He said: “I really was very, very happy. But it's completely unexpected and humbling. I enjoy working with lots of great people at the authority.”

Dave has been at the forefront of leading the nationally-recognised pest control programme, that focuses on giving residents access to free help to rid their homes of mice, rats and cockroaches.

During the pandemic, he was instrumental in finding new ways to keep pests at bay in the town whilst social distancing measures were in place - using virtual appointments to make sure his team were reaching those in need of assistance.

He explained: “We've never lost sight of the fact that it is about public health. For the last three years, we've been nationally recognised by the industry. The pest prevention programme is environmentally sensitive and from what we do in Luton, we are consultants in Milton Keynes now.

“We’ve got to care about the environment as well as public health, so we have a holistic approach and we are really proud of that.”

HM Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, Susan Lousada, said: “It is lovely to see so many people being recognised within our county of Bedfordshire”.