Frontline police urged to speak out as sick leave numbers soar
New stats show a 55% rise in the number of officers taking leave for things like stress and PTSD
Frontline police in the North East are being urged to speak out about the trauma they face - before they reach crisis point.
New figures show a 55% increase in the number of officers taking stress-related sick leave in England and Wales since 2012.
Sergeant Mick Urwin from Durham Police is one of those officers - after attending a collision involving a colleague back in 2004, he had to be signed off work because of the flashbacks and tiredness caused by PTSD.
Twelve years later, attending another collision, it came back again - and now 18 months after that, Mick is still waiting to return to full duty.
He said:
"I'll sit in front of a therapist now and - I'll freely admit I can sit there and cry my eyes out - but it's about coming to terms with what happened during that original incident.
"I can now talk about the incident in detail without getting emotional about it - before, that wasn't the case.
"If I've learnt anything from it, it's about putting your hand up. Typical northern bloke, thought I could manage it, and I couldn't.
"I think, certainly across the whole police service, we still have stigma around mental health."
A Home Office spokesman said:
"It is the responsibility of chief officers - supported by the College of Policing - to ensure the welfare of their staff.
"The Government takes the issue of police wellbeing very seriously and has invested in programmes, including targeted mental health support and £7.5 million over three years for a dedicated national welfare service, to directly support officers."