Police pressures a 'cocktail for tragedy'

A total of 192 Surrey Police officers were signed off work for mental health reasons in 2023/24

A rising number of Surrey Police officers are being signed off due to mental health issues, amid multiple pressures which have left many "really struggling".

A Freedom of Information request submitted by Police Oracle, a news website which covers policing issues, found that 242 officers had periods of absence in 2024/25 due to stress, depression, anxiety or PTSD.

This is a 26% increase on the previous year, and according to the vice chair of Surrey Police Federation (SPF) Gary Stephen, not a surprise.

He said the combination of stress, mounting workloads and pay was creating a "cocktail for tragedy".

"The mental load on officers has increased to such a point where officers are really struggling," he said.

"The amount of traumatic events police officers have to deal with during their careers are not highlighted enough.

"Add this to the stress of workloads being so high and pressurised, and then not being remunerated well enough, and it is a cocktail for tragedy."

Confirming the figures, Surrey Police said it has a number of support resources for those who are struggling.

These include free access to mental health first aiders, police chaplains, a 24/7 Employee and Volunteer Assistance Programme, and a force medical officer.

A demobilising and defuse service is available following a single incident of trauma exposure, while officers working within higher risk departments - such as roads policing and domestic abuse - can have psychological screening.

Earlier this year the SPF backed calls for greater trauma support after it was revealed that three officers in the county had taken their own lives in 2024.

The increase seen in Surrey Police is part of a national trend described as "very worrying" by the wellbeing lead for the Police Federation of England Wales, Paul Williams.

He believes the above factors have "contributed to an extreme rise in mental ill health within the police" which, if unchecked, will only increase further.

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