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Emergency Services: Counselling

Question for Home Office

UIN HL17095, tabled on 10 July 2019

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce mandatory weekly counselling sessions for (1) frontline police officers in England and Wales, and (2) ambulance staff in England.

Answered on

22 July 2019

Front line police officers in England and Wales

Each Chief Constable has a duty to manage and support their workforce effectively, ensuring the welfare of all officers and staff. It is therefore for Chief Constables to determine the appropriate wellbeing and occupational health provision within their police forces, including access to counselling.

The Government takes the issue of police welfare very seriously and has invested in programmes which offer help directly to officers and staff. In July 2017 the Home Office awarded £7.5 million from the Police Transformation Fund to the College of Policing over three years to pilot and, if these pilots were successful, roll out a dedicated national service to help provide enhanced welfare support to serving police officers and staff.

Following two years of development and piloting, the National Police Wellbeing Service (NPWS) was launched in April 2019. The NPWS has developed evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources which can be accessed by forces, as well as individual officers and staff.

Ambulance staff in England

Policy relating to ambulance staff is the responsibility of the Department for Health and Social Care.

Answered by

Home Office