Page 3 - Bedfed Conf2016 Flip Book

Chair’s introduction
Officer welfare takes centre stage
Contents
Chair’s introduction
‘Reform? it might be worth asking us what we think’
More must be done to help victims of abuse
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Question time: Home Secretary addresses members’ concerns 8
Shadow home secretary: i believe in blue
‘Police drivers need better legal protection’
Sir tom Winsor praises rank and file officers
taser: an essential bit of kit on preventing officer assaults
Film reveals the effects of mental health crisis
2020 vision - developing specialist capabilities
officers need more training to support vulnerable people
Joined up approach needed to help vulnerable people
Focus on women in policing
We can tackle our bias, says psychologist
Getting to grips with an older workforce
driving home the success of operation dragoon
officers need more training to support vulnerable people
Plans to improve detective training
a Force for good...
CoNtaCt yoUR FEdERatioN
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By Jim Mallen Chairman of Bedfordshire Police Federation
the Police Federation’s national conference had a very important theme running through it this year – officer welfare.
The theme of the conference, held in Bournemouth for the last time, may have been Believe in Blue but, for me, there was a real sense that members’ health and wellbeing was at the forefront of many people’s minds.
At the start of the week, the Federation released the initial results of its national survey looking at the impact the demands of the job have on officer welfare and the experiences of those officers who have experienced mental health problems.
It made shocking reading. Officers reported feeling fearful of disclosing they were have mental health issues due to the stigma involved, reported a lack of workplace support and expressed concerns about work exposing them to further traumatic situations which could trigger further stress.
To highlight just a few of the key statistics revealed in the initial results:
l 62 per cent said they never or rarely felt
optimistic and 60 per cent never or rarely
felt relaxed
l Of those who had been off work sick in
the previous 12 months, 29 per cent said one or more days of that had been due to stress, depression or anxiety
l 73 per cent of managers said they had not been given any training on how to support a colleague who was having difficulties with mental health and wellbeing and many reported an inability to spot early signs of distress, anxiety and depression.
So, against this backdrop, I was particularly interested in the Wednesday morning conference session “How blue is the thin blue line? Police officers and mental health”. The session began with four officers talking about their own experiences of suffering mental health issues. It made for harrowing viewing, and I was full of admiration for their courage in talking about their experiences.
One officer concluded: “I thought they (the Force) would show me more compassion.”
And that’s a key issue isn’t it? We should all show compassion to people who are suffering a mental illness and yet the stigma remains, the lack of understanding continues.
But let’s hope change is on its way. The session included input from the Blue Light
Programme, an excellent initiative launched by mental health charity MIND specifically to support emergency service personnel. We have already made contact with the programme leaders to arrange bespoke training for Federation representatives.
Details of the Welfare Support Programme, a partnership between Police Federation and the Police Firearms Officers’ Association – were also outlined and showed that we are getting our act together and trying to ensure better support is available for officers. To me, this is vital and should be a priority not just for the Police Federation, staff associations, charities and other agencies but also for police forces. The police service must look after its most important resource – its people.
For that reason, I was also pleased to hear during another conference session that there has been considerable progress in the way forces are dealing with assaults on officers and staff. A highlight of conference 2015 was a presentation by Hampshire Police Federation chairman John Apter who detailed how he had worked with his own force to develop a seven-point plan aimed at improving the way it handled these incidents. While his update this year showed there is still work to be done, it was pleasing to see the majority of forces – Bedfordshire included – have followed Hampshire and developed their own plans to ensure officers and staff are properly supported if they are the victim of an assault while carrying out their duties.
Continuing the health and welfare theme, it was also interesting to learn more about how, as a result of pension changes, a reduction in ill-health retirements, and other factors, we will increasingly find an older workforce in policing and the effects this will have. This is something we will all need to adapt to and again, I am not just talking about the Federation – though it will inevitably find itself at the forefront of supporting its members – but also line managers, senior officers and the Force as a whole.
The other session I would like to mention is the input from Dr Peter Jones, who had the unenviable task of filling the post-lunch slot after the keynote speeches. But his presentation on unconscious bias and how it affects us all was both informative and thought-provoking. I think everyone would benefit from listening to what he has to say.
Finally, I would like to pay tribute to DS Paul Galvin who was attending his last conference before retiring. He has been an excellent Federation rep for many years, offering invaluable support to his colleagues, as well as, of course, being a fine police officer. Thank you, Paul, and we wish you a long and happy retirement; you will be missed.
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