The award has been given because she helped tackle crime and anti-social behaviour near her home.

She was a victim of anti-social behaviour herself, which she said came predominantly from the North Bridge Inn pub in St David’s Hill.  She even had her window smashed. Residents in the area had been affected since the pub changed hands in May this year, with noise and anti-social behaviour in the area significantly increasing.
Hannah said: “What  the residents around here did was get together and say  ‘we don’t have to put up with  this’ and so we looked at what we could do and found we could ask the local authority for a review of the  license.

“We didn’t have to suffer  in silence.”

Following evidence from  her, fellow residents, Exeter  City Council, the police and  local councillors, the pub  lease was reviewed and life in the area improved.

And it is because of all the different parties involved that she does not  want sole recognition.

“My award is not for me in coordinating the effort,  but for the whole community, which is a strong one,”  she said. “It decided it would not put up with anti-social  behaviour on the scale it was at. It is a boost for people power."

Hannah has received a  Community Crime Fighter award as part of the Government’s Justice Seen, Justice Done programme.

She was not able to go to the Downing Street ceremony on Wednesday, attended by Prime Minister Gordon  Brown and Home Secretary Alan Johnson, but said she was pleased to have been nominated.

She said:  “I was grateful to be nominated but I see it as a nomination for the whole community.  I have lived in St David’s for the best part of 25 years and it is a great area to live  in. It is very vibrant and has a real community.”

The North Bridge Inn’s licence was reviewed by Exeter City Council’s licensing  sub-committee on September 21 where the owners accepted that there had been serious premises management failures and had now issued the tenant landlady notice to quit.  The committee also requested a sound survey and placed a restriction on the licence requiring sound limiters to be used when playing amplified music.  New tenants have since taken over the running of the premises and have said they are keen to ensure these problems are not repeated.