A youngster who persuaded a man in distress not to jump from a bridge in York has been honoured at a prestigious ceremony.
Owen Jeffers of Sherburn-in-Elmet was named the Unsung Hero at the Yorkshire Young Achievers Awards.
The 19-year-old was enjoying a night out in York with friends in June when they noticed a man behaving oddly on Ouse Bridge.
As they watched, the man climbed on to the bridge parapet and stood up.
Owen was concerned that the man was going to jump and walked back to the centre of the bridge to ask if he was safe.
The man was very dismissive at first but as his actions became increasingly worrying, Owen felt he had to intervene.
The distressed man eventually agreed to come down from the wall if Owen took his hand, which was a particularly terrifying moment for the youngster as he did not know if he might get pulled into the river himself.
Owen continued to talk to the man before surreptitiously signalling to a passing police van that help was required.
Although the police van initially drove off, two officers returned on foot five minutes later and he was able to confirm the need for help without alerting the distressed man.
One of the officers then took over the care of the man while Owen briefed the other on exactly what had happened, and the police were able to take the man away to safety.
Owen received his Unsung Hero Award from previous winner Liz Green in front of more than 350 people at Leeds United’s Centenary Pavilion.
Organised by the Yorkshire Young Achievers Foundation, the annual event has now raised more than £1.3m to support young people in Yorkshire.
Chairman of the awards Peter McCormick said:“Every year we are astonished, inspired and, frequently, moved to tears by the amazing stories of our winners whose achievements underline the depth and breadth of the quality of the young people in our region.
“None of this would be possible without the support of our sponsors and our guests, many of whom have been with us almost since the beginning, and I am very proud that with their help, we were able to continue our grants programme which helps young people across Yorkshire to reach their full potential.”