What we've been up to
Mental Health Crisis Line
An independent and confidential Mental Health Crisis Line has been launched to provide immediate support for anyone working in policing experiencing a mental health crisis or suicidal thoughts. Available 24/7/365, the Crisis Line can be accessed by calling 0300 131 2789.
The line is designed to support people in any role in policing and is not for members of the public. It is staffed with independent, expert counsellors trained in suicide prevention who understand policing.
If you’re in crisis, and need help now, call 0300 131 2789.
Supervisor support model online course launched
As a supervisor or line manager you will know that your team’s performance can be affected by stress or sickness absence, and that these can be caused by a variety of factors.
We are delighted to launch this brand new course which is designed to help you spot the signs of ill health in your team and know how to make sure they get the help they need.
Your own health is important too, so we will be looking at how to care for yourself when supporting someone else.
Please note: This course does not qualify you to diagnose mental health conditions but will assist you to support and sign post your staff to ensure that they stay well and get the help they need.
You can access the course and read more about it using the link below
Go to supervisor support course
Updated major incident guidance
We have published an update to our major incident guidance. The update does not replace the existing guidance, it seeks to add to it, to provide a more practical and accessible prioritisation list for leaders operating at gold, silver and bronze levels.
In 2018, we carried out an extensive review of major incident wellbeing support which resulted in the original guidance being developed and later published.
More recently, that guidance was applied following the major incident and subsequent disorder in Southport last year. The HMICFRS review of Operation Navette and learning from within the gold group has since enabled us to refresh the guidance so that the inspectorates’ recommendations are addressed, the post incident learning is taken forward and new developments in national wellbeing capabilities are incorporated.
We have pulled all this information together for easy access.
On our 'police wellbeing and major incidents guidance' page you will find the original guidance, the findings and recommendations from Op Navette, and the new additional guidance which provides a more practical and accessible prioritisation list for leaders operating at gold, silver and bronze levels.
New children's book 'Darcy visits the allotment'
We've been working with PC Cathy Veale, from Devon and Cornwall Constabulary, to develop and publish a brand new children's' book 'Darcy visits the allotment'. Cathy is a wellbeing practitioner, misconduct peer support co-ordinator and OK9 wellbeing dog handler and SPOC, she has written and designed this book based on her own allotment and her OK9 dog Darcy. The book investigates the importance of connections, making time for our families, and the importance of care for ourselves and others.
The book was launched at a special event at the allotment where Darcy hangs out, and copies are being distributed by our OK9 dog handlers to families and children who may need a little extra support over the summer. We'll be publishing an e-book on our website in the autumn.
National police wellbeing awards extended until end August
We know you are all busy and as we have been approached by a few forces for more time we are delighted to let you know the deadline for OK Award submissions has now been extended to the end of August. We would like to thank all of you who have already sent your entries in, and we hope this extension will give more of you a chance to shout about the work you have been doing to support police wellbeing.
Don't forget, this year we've got some brand new categories and we've made the application process much simpler - so what are you waiting for?
The new categories for 2025 are:
- Peer support
- OK9 wellbeing dogs
- Operation Hampshire
- Healthy living (sleep and fatigue, physical fitness, nutrition)
- Occupational health
- Trauma support and suicide prevention
- Support for police families or police leavers
- Staff engagement
How to enter
You'll find all the entry criteria for each of the categories and a downloadable application form on our 'How to enter' page. The closing date is 31 August 2025 and the winners will be announced at our Annual Conference in November.
What's been happening in our workstreams:
Peer support update
In July we delivered Peer support training for an extra 79 peer supporters. We have been very busy booking future courses and have had a great uptake on them. Due to this, all courses from now until October 2nd are now full.
Dates of future courses: Oct 2nd (Limited spaces left), Oct 15th, Nov 5th, Nov 13th, Nov 27th, Dec 3rd, Dec 17th
If you are interested in any of the above courses or our Op Hampshire peer supporter training, again please get in touch.
Op Hampshire update
We have delivered another round of training this month for new Op Hampshire Peer Supporters on behalf of Sussex Police who are developing the network to ensure their Op Hampshire responses are followed up with a meaningful offer of peer support. We are looking forward to delivering this training in South Wales, West Mercia and Bedfordshire in the coming months.
The Op Hampshire national network held its 25th national meeting in July, with 29 forces represented. These meetings bring together Op Hampshire leads from across the country, providing improvement and knowledge sharing opportunities and regularly feature guest speakers. As a result of a previous session, we have published a new Top Tip 6 Repeat victims which looks at the issue of repeat assaults on officers and staff. You can access all our Op Hampshire guidance on our Op Hampshire page.
What's coming soon
Publication of the National Police Wellbeing Survey findings
The findings of our National Police Wellbeing Survey will be published in the next few weeks.
We have already briefed national senior leaders, HMICFRS, the Home Office and the NPCC Workforce Committee to talk through the findings. Verbal briefings are taking place with our SPOCs across forces and they will be receiving their local reports this week.
We'll tell you about the findings and the next steps in our August bulletin.
Oscar Kilo conference and awards 2025
Our 2024 Oscar Kilo Conference and awards ceremony is being planned for 17-19 November and will take place at Crewe Hall Hotel and Spa, Crewe, Cheshire.
All invitations with full details have been sent, if you have not received an invite and think you should be on the list please get in touch.
Workforce prioritisation guidance
We are due to publish our updated workforce prioritisation guidance and self-assessment toolkit. We will be sharing this with forces over the summer.
Events
Over the coming months we will be at the following event, if you are attending, please come and say hello.
- Emergency Services Show - 17-18 September, NEC Birmingham - You can now register for tickets
Our Service Director Andy Rhodes will be hosting a special session 'What we’ve learned from the Summer 2024 riots' on Thursday 18 September at 10am - 1pm. This will comprise of three sessions focusing on the safety, wellbeing, and resilience of those on the frontline.