Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a scheme to support police officers and emergency call handlers in obtaining (a) housing and (b) mental health support.

The Government greatly values the vital work of police officers and emergency call handlers in keeping the public safe.

The Home Office is committed to supporting the wellbeing of the police workforce. This includes providing ongoing funding to the National Police Wellbeing Service (NPWS), which provides evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources which can be accessed by forces. This helps Chief Constables in their duty to ensure the wellbeing of their workforce. In particular, the Service is helping forces to identify where there is most risk of impacts on mental health, and developing work around building resilience, as well as putting in place support for those who need it in response to traumatic events.

The Police Covenant has already helped deliver pre-deployment mental health training for new recruits and improved occupational health standards for officers in service.

Any scheme concerning access to housing for the police workforce or other key workers would be a matter for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.