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Trauma Resilience in UK Policing

About the research

The Trauma Resilience in UK Policing project explores how to better support the brain's ability to process trauma exposure and maintain resilience in contemporary operational policing and how this transfers across to other Emergency Response work, such as the RNLI. The project is sponsored by The Wates Family Enterprise Trust in 2024-2025 and works in collaboration with the Department of Sociology. Together, we provide practical techniques, training material and evidence-based insight to bring real effective change to trauma management for Emergency Responders and their families. The project also feeds into the work of The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales through their Senior Leaders Board and to the National Police Chief's Council regarding policing culture.

The project has been reported on by BBC News, BBC Inside out, Channel 4 Dispatches and The One Show as well as having featured in the national press, including newspapers, digital coverage and radio throughout 2019. The study was also selected for the Cambridge Research Evaluation Framework (REF) 2021 and nominated for the Vice Chancellor’s Research Impact and Engagement Awards 2019. We also represented the work at the May 2024 Westminster Select Committee for Policing. Here is a testimonial to some of the work from AC Neil Basu QPM former National Lead for Counter Terrorism Policing:

“Counter Terrorism Policing is full of officers and staff who do not need to be motivated to stop terrorists. They get up every day to put themselves psychologically and physically in harm’s way on behalf of the public they are sworn to protect. But, behind the badge they are human beings who experience the most terrible things and it has a profound impact that needs training care and support - precisely the kind of training, care and support you provide. I am more grateful for your help than I can possibly express in this short statement but simply I say - thank you.” 

Read more at: The living evidence base: 'Policing: The Job & The Life'

The living evidence base: 'Policing: The Job & The Life'

The UK's first survey to assess trauma management and working conditions in UK policing engaged with 18,175 officers and staff across the UK between October and December 2018. Headline findings set the UK’s first Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) prevalence rate in policing at 1 in 5 and the world’s first Complex PTSD rate in a working population (12%). In 2022 the first evidence of a connection between job quality and working conditions with Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in UK policing was published. Data sharing between other Universities continues to keep alive this resource and the insight it offers into how the culture of policing permeates and can have direct relationships with health and wellbeing. The data continues to be brought to life by other Universities (Manchester and Glasgow) involved in the AIRWAVE project and used in PhD research (Glasgow) to advance our knowledge of the health and wellbeing issues UK police workforces face.


Read more at: Trauma Resilience in High Risk roles

Trauma Resilience in High Risk roles

Extensive qualitative research (i.e. focus groups, consultation and job shadowing) was undertaken through Autumn 2018 and into Spring 2019 with SO15 & Counter-Terrorism, emergency call handling, online Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) and firearms units. In 2020-2022 Dr Jess extended this to observational and qualitative research into resilience in covert surveillance (such as TSUs). We uncovered how individuals develop unique skills and coping mechanisms to process trauma exposure and provide recommendations for training, assessment and wellbeing support for those in similar high-risk roles. From 2024 Dr Jess will be working with those specialising in Digital Exploitation and also with those involved in more discrete roles within the military, here and abroad. With the RNLI, her work will also extend to supporting those involved in high-risk lifeboat stations dealing with suicide and migrant boats.


Read more at: Police Traumatic Events Checklist (PTEC): UK and Abroad

Police Traumatic Events Checklist (PTEC): UK and Abroad

Everyday trauma exposure is becoming increasingly accepted as part of contemporary policing, yet there are no means of quantifying it. This project has produced the UK’s first police-specific trauma exposure events checklist (PTEC) to enable forces to do just that.


Read more at: An exclusive interview with Rick Hanson on Pandemic Resilience

An exclusive interview with Rick Hanson on Pandemic Resilience

In order to meet the challenges of the pandemic, we turned to the most influential and insightful voices in resilience and mental health to find out what we can do on the ground to help protect our protectors that much more. Who’s saying what about developing resilience in the police during Covid19...


Read more at: TITEN

TITEN

TITEN: N euroscience I nformed T rauma E xposure T raining Dr Jess with Cambridge Resilient Research Ltd (directed by Prof Brendan Burchell) now offers cognitive training, trauma management tools, leadership training and high-risk trauma resilience support to all Emergency Responders and associated...



Latest news

TITEN Neuroscience Informed Trauma Exposure Training

22 August 2024

Dr Jess with Cambridge Resilient Research Ltd (directed by Prof Brendan Burchell) is now offering a new, discrete and bespoke trauma resilience service, including presenting, leadership training, high-risk resilience work, trauma management planning, research and evidence-based approaches and incident-specific support...

Author's story

26 January 2024

The Marshwood Vale magazine of the South West features a front cover piece on Dr Jess Miller and how she found herself working in trauma resilience. To read a bit more about how the personal meets the professional, honouring the trusted adage "Re-search is Me-search", click here.

BLOG: The Policing Mind one year on

22 June 2023

Here Dr Jess talks about how her first book The Policing Mind: Trauma Resilience for a New Era has had impact since 2022: Transforming Society ~ Getting inside the policing mind In doing so, the book as been passed to the Home Secretary in the hope of further change to our police service being more trauma informed and open...

More project talk...