Devon girls wins tractor naming competition

Retro inspired name proves a hit

Back in May, Devon & Cornwall Police launched a competition offering children living in th the opportunity to name the new Force Tractor.

Almost 300 entries were received from children aged 12 or under and the winning name, selected by Assistant Chief Constable Glen Mayhew, was submitted by seven-year-old Eloise Bettison who came up with ‘Inspector Moors’.

The John Deere tractor has been loaned to Devon & Cornwall Police, free of charge, by local agricultural machinery dealership Masons Kings and will be used as an engagement tool by the Rural Affairs team at agricultural shows and events across the region this summer.

Eloise and her family were invited to Woofstock to officially unveil the new name, where she revealed to the team that she “thought it would be good for the tractor to inspect the moors” which led her to choose the name.

Eloise helps her parents on the family farm and was very excited to have been chosen as the winner of the competition, adding that she “couldn’t wait to go back to school to tell friends and teachers”.

The distinctive police livery has been drawing crowds and inspiring conversations with local farmers since the tractor’s debut at the Devon County Show in May, and its new name is sure to encourage even more.

Devon & Cornwall Police Constable Clarke Orchard said: “The response to the competition was fantastic! There were almost 300 entries in total and several suggestions that would have made excellent names.

“On Saturday, at Woofstock Festival, we revealed that Eloise was the winner of our competition with ‘Inspector Moors’ – a truly deserved win, and those of us old enough to remember the popular detective series Inspector Morse will appreciate the clever play on words.

“Inspector Moors will be joining us throughout the summer to help us interact with members of the public and enable us to have important and meaningful conversations about how we can work with our communities to tackle rural crime.”

Alan Rowdon, Group Agricultural Sales Manager at Masons Kings, added: "The aim of our partnership with Devon & Cornwall Police was to support and stand in solidarity with our farming communities in the fight against rural crime.

“We are very proud of the response and the efforts of Devon & Cornwall Police on this campaign, and would like to pass on our congratulations to Eloise for coming up with the fantastic winning name, Inspector Moors."

The next opportunity to meet Inspector Moors is at the Yealmpton Show on Wednesday 31 July.