The father of murdered Saddleworth PC Nicola Hughes has said she would be “proud” of his MBE for his work supporting young people who have suffered loss due to violent crime.

Bryn Hughes, whose daughter, from Diggle, was killed in 2012 alongside fellow PC Fiona Bone in a gun and grenade ambush while on duty in Tameside has been recognised in the New Year Honours.

Mr Hughes set up the PC Nicola Hughes Memorial Fund in 2014 to help young people under the age of 21, who have lost a close family member through a violent crime such as murder or manslaughter, with grants and services.

Mr Hughes said the MBE was “quite a surprise” and came as a “poignant” way to mark 10 years since his daughter’s murder.

“I suppose it’s tinged with that bit of sadness as well because the only reason I’ve been nominated and been given the award was because of what happened to Nicola and the work I’ve done since then.

“It marks the 10-year anniversary so it’s quite a poignant way to mark it to be honest.”

Asked what she would think of the achievement, he said: “I think she would be proud. She would be very proud.

“But I think she’d be laughing. I think she’d buy me some PJs with a medal on it or something as well. She shared my sense of humour so she’d make some fun of it.”

Mr Hughes said that helping children after the loss of a parent or seeing messages from teenagers thanking him for Christmas gift tokens “means the world to me”.

“Those are the most important people to be recognised by,” he said.

On why it has been so important to build a legacy for his daughter and to help others, he said: “I suppose in a way you carry on being a voice.

“You take up their message to people and to the public to say: ‘This is what we’ve lost, this is what they’ve lost.’

“They’ve lost their lives so we want to carry on doing what they’re doing and try to achieve something that they may not have done.

“So it’s important and it gives family something to hold on to, I suppose.”

He said news of other violent crimes can put you “right back in that moment”.

“We’ve just seen recently two murders that have taken place over Christmas and that strikes a chord – you know what their family are going through, especially the ages of the recent victims and you know the phone call, the knock on the door they will receive,” he said.

“Obviously if it’s a police officer that is murdered on duty or killed on duty, I think that affects you more, because it magnifies the dangers that they face every day.

“I think the message is just: ‘Remember the victims and the families that are left behind because there is no coming back from that.’”

Mr Hughes said he will be looking forward to 2023, where he will be continuing the work in his daughter’s name, raising money, raising awareness and running another five marathons.