SUICIDE TOOLKIT CYCLE OF SUICIDE STOPPING THE


One in ten people attempt suicide after losing someone to suicide themselves, which is why, with rates at an all-time high among officers, police are taking urgent action


Explaining the need to


have uniform guidance across all the 43 forces in England and Wales, PFEW Wellbeing Lead, Belinda Goodwin, said: “This is a document you don’t ever want to use, but when someone does die by suicide, the impact and the ripples that can be felt around the force are immense, and this in itself can create a vulnerability within a force. Hence why this sort of wrap-around must be taken into consideration.” Postvention in suicide is of the utmost importance as it provides support to those affected when someone dies by suicide and is the key to preventing them from being at risk of suicidal ideation.


More officers were lost to suicide than killed on duty in England and Wales in 2021. While the reasons behind the scale of these tragedies are being investigated, the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) has worked with the National Police Wellbeing Service (NPWS), Oscar Kilo, and Samaritans to develop the first-ever suicide postvention toolkit. The guidance was formally launched in


Studies have found that


as many as 135 people can be affected by one death by suicide. A plethora of


from work or education after experiencing the traumatic event in their life. “One officer who dies by suicide is one


too many, as it can be mostly preventable if the support is there in the first place. This is what we are advocating, and we must focus more on prevention going forward,” added Belinda.


The suicide postvention toolkit aims to


address the after-effects and negate the impact of an officer taking their life on other officers and staff and help them process the loss. It identifies that officers and staff may try to get back to ‘business as usual’ quickly, but may find that the complex emotions following the death by suicide of a colleague are not easily brushed away. The toolkit provides detailed step-by-step


“This is a document you don’t ever want to use, but when someone does die by suicide the impact and the ripples that can be felt around the force are immense, and this in itself can create a vulnerability within a force”


September and is an attempt to add value to the commitment of the police service to prevent and reduce suicide. It is designed to assist senior officers to undertake an informed response in the tragic event of an officer’s death by suicide.


28 | POLICE | DECEMBER 2022


scientific studies has found evidence that people who have been affected, directly or indirectly, by suicide are almost three times more at risk of suicidal ideation. Many of these studies estimate that as many as one in 10 people attempt to take their life after losing someone close to them to suicide while at least 8% abstain


guidance on what to do immediately after an officer’s death by suicide, after 48 hours and in the following weeks and months. It recognises that in such a tragic event, there would be some colleagues who might feel strongly about the need to ‘do something’ as a way of coping and making sense of it all. The toolkit suggests that the force can support such well-intentioned responses by offering ideas and opportunities to help, which are appropriate, proportionate and sensitive to the bereaved family members. “When we lose


someone, particularly to suicide, everyone wants to do something. As police, we fix things.


We want memorials, things named after people, but it needs to be a streamlined approach, or it is not ideal for the family”, the toolkit advises.


For more information on the suicide postvention toolkit please write to Belinda Goodwin bgoodwin@polfed.org.


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