The police might not seem the likeliest recipient of an award for Jewish education.

But the Central Specialist Crime Team from the Metropolitan Police were specially honoured at the fifth annual Jewish School Awards presented by Pajes, the Jewish Leadership Council’s schools’ network, last week.

The Met worked with Pajes last year to run safeguarding evenings for parents in London and Manchester following attempts to groom pupils by a sexual predator.

It had been “one of the most far-reaching parent education programmes in our community and the largest parent programme that the police have ever run,” Pajes said.

A life achievement award went to Lira Winston, assistant director of Pajes, who has contributed close to 30 years’ service to the Jewish community.

She worked with Jewish Continuity — the organisation set up by Lord Sacks as Chief Rabbi to support youth and education — and was project manager for the JLC’s commission on Jewish schools before joining Pajes in 2012.

Clare Zinkin received the award for school-based volunteering, building and running the library at Etz Chaim Primary in Mill Hill.

The award for collaboration between Jewish and secular studies went to Rabbi Joshua Conway and Morah Bilha Cohen at Nancy Reuben Primary in Hendon for the school’s trip to Rome.

At secondary level, Naomi Amdurer, head of middle school at Immanuel College in Bushey, received the accolade for combining Jewish and secular activities for the school’s charity and social action programme, Shevet Achim.

The “beyond the classroom” primary award went to Rebbe Dovi Colman at Broughton Jewish Cassel Fox in Salford, who has taken pupils to perform at homes for the elderly and to distribute food and drink to the homeless.

The secondary winner in the same category was Ofrit Selby from King David High School in Manchester, who recently started a school allotment which in particular involved children who struggled socially.