Police Officers Facing Mental Health Crisis as Pressures Push Them to Breaking Point

10 October 2025

Cleveland’s Police officers are being pushed to breaking point as the service faces a “mental health crisis creeping towards the point of no return”, Lauren Somerville, Chair of Cleveland Police Federation has warned.

Lauren says policing in Cleveland has never been tougher. “The reality is we are under unimaginable pressure and scrutiny. Officers today face challenges that are often unseen or misunderstood by the public,” she said.

“They are swimming in trauma every day, dealing with the worst parts of our society - domestic abuse, suicides, victims of knife crime, death and unimaginable scenes.”

On top of that, she says, officers are struggling to cope with unmanageable workloads while sacrificing their own health and wellbeing to keep the public safe. “They are doing everything they can to give members of the public the service they deserve, but it is taking an enormous toll,” Lauren added.

She has called for urgent action to protect officers’ welfare and safeguard the future of policing. “What we need is for the government and the public to recognise is that with the right support, fair pay and conditions, and proper investment in wellbeing, they will have a police force that is healthy and able to continue delivering the highest level of service to the public,” she said.

Lauren was speaking after a recent report from HMICFRS exposed the scale of the strain facing officers across England and Wales. Police Federation Chair Tiff Lynch said the findings were “disturbing and shaming.”

“Officers are drowning under workloads, facing increasing daily violence, and are even paying 90 per cent of the cost of their own rehab out of their own pockets,” Tiff said. “This is simply unacceptable.”

Lauren said the report only confirms what officers in Cleveland already know from experience. “We are seeing the effects first-hand. Without urgent change, policing will struggle to recover,” she added