NEWS
Wales campaign to halt emergency worker assaults
Emergency services in Wales have launched a campaign to encourage the public to ‘work with us, not against us’ – after a shocking rise in assaults. The campaign is being supported
by Federation branches in Wales and spearheaded by the Joint Emergency Services Group (JESG), which is comprised of blue light services, Armed Forces, NHS Wales and the Welsh Government. It will focus on key dates this year when assaults spike – for example sporting events, bank holidays and Bonfire Night. More than 4,240 assaults were committed against emergency workers in the country from April 2019 to November 2020, representing a monthly average of 10 per cent. Sergeant Arwyn Jones from North
Wales Police was recently punched and spat at while arresting a man who was jailed for three counts of assaulting officers. He explained: “I was assaulted twice by the male – he punched out at me twice making contact and also spat at me as I was leaving the cell.”
Arwyn was previously grabbed
around the neck in a horrifying attack. He recalled: “I lost consciousness and broke my arm. The next thing I remember following that incident was waking up, being placed in the back of an ambulance, and taken to the hospital. That’s the one that really made me think how dangerous the job that we currently do is. You leave your house, and hope you are going to come back safely and alive.” In 2018, the maximum sentence under the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act was doubled from six months to 12 months in prison. However, violent offenders will soon face up to two years in prison under new laws. Mark Jones, Secretary and Treasurer
of North Wales Police Federation, said: “Enough is enough. Our colleagues do not deserve to be punched, kicked, spat at or abused for simply doing their job. We are concerned about the return to ‘normality’ after the pandemic, as the night-time economy comes back. This could easily mean more irresponsible,
Sergeant Arwyn Jones
violent behaviour towards police officers. “Many of our colleagues are already burned out from stress or exhaustion, and that’s why we are supporting this call for the public to work with us. We need to halt this tide of assaults.” Tony Dicken, District Crown
Prosecutor for CPS Cymru Wales, added: “Any assault or abuse of an emergency worker is viewed extremely seriously by the CPS. The CPS is committed to using the full weight of the law to protect them.”
Operation Hampshire rolls out nationally
The eagerly awaited national roll-out of Operation Hampshire will mean that police officers will be better supported if they are the victim of assault. The initiative has evolved out of a seven-point plan devised by our National Chair John Apter and Chief Constable Andy Marsh and is based on the principle that assaults on police officers should be treated with the same care, compassion and commitment as an assault on a member of the public.
04 I POLICE I JUNE 2021 The national project, which started
in October 2020, has now seen the creation of a network across all forces sharing best practice and developing strategies for standardised level of care for officers.
Chief Inspector David Brewster, who launched the project at the Metropolitan Police Service, is seconded to the College of Policing to lead on the national delivery of the project. He said: “Through Oscar Kilo we hope to keep Op Hampshire firmly
on the agenda with the advent of the Police Covenant to ensure that the wellbeing of our colleagues who face aggression and violence is a priority.” A series of monthly themed events
are running online to encourage police leaders to engage with rank and file officers to paint an accurate picture of the situation on the ground regarding assaults. The last session focussed on what should happen if hate crime is a contributing factor.
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