Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the (a) support available to police officers who attend traumatic incidents and (b) suicide prevention training provided to police officers.

The health and wellbeing of our police is a top priority for the Home Office and it’s essential that those who have faced traumatic incidents in the line of duty receive the support they need to recover and continue serving. We continue to fund the National Police Wellbeing Service who have developed an evidenced-based trauma support model which is now available to forces.

NPWS have also created a national suicide action plan which aims to educate and support the workforce, reduce stress and improve data recording. In addition, the Service is piloting a 24/7 Mental Health Crisis Support Line to provide urgent support for our police when they need it the most.

It is the responsibility of individual Chief Officers to effectively manage their workforce, ensuring the appropriate health and wellbeing provisions are in place for their officers and staff.