Staffordshire Police Federation chair Phil Jones has spoken about the need for better wellbeing care for officers before they reach a “crisis point”.
The pressures on policing have become more intense over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the realities of policing ever-changing lockdown regulations made more severe by a pre-existing lack of manpower and resources.
Phil said: “The pressures our members face can come from all different angles – whether it’s frustration at being unable to do the job properly due to lack of resources, understaffing leading to officers attending multiple traumatic incidents in a row, or the simple reality of keeping the public safe against the very worst of humanity.
“To make things worse, these pressures often go unspoken or unnoticed until an officer reaches crisis point and asks for much-needed help.
“That crisis point is a terrible place to be, and we should do everything we can to help members before they get there.”
A recent Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) pilot scheme pre-emptively checking in on Fed reps to help them with the pressures of their role has met with success.
The scheme, which is still in its pilot stage, aims to help representatives balance their full-time policing role with their Federation responsibilities.
It does this by helping reps identify potential stressors and offering helpful, practical advice on coping with the demands of the role.
National Federation wellbeing chair Hayley Aley suggested to attendees at the Emergency Services Show in Birmingham this week that forces record the number and type of incidents officers attend and use the data to offer similar practical support to those who may be struggling.
“If the organisation could work with that information, take the time to speak to the officer, check in and give them that support we would be pre-emptively tackling the problem,” she said.
