Officers Need To Decompress

19 February 2025

Officers Need To Decompress

It is vitally important for officers to decompress and take a short break on busy shifts, when they have often dealt with traumatic incidents.

That’s the view of Leicestershire Police Federation Chair Andy Spence, who was responding to reports that the force is removing televisions and radios from force buildings as a money-saving exercise.

The force has said the move will save around £10,000 in licence fees – leading to a furious backlash from officers.

Andy said: “We already know that morale is at rock bottom as it is. This is just worse for the officers because when they have been out, dealing with those traumatic incidents, they need to come back and decompress.

“They need to be able to actually down tools and just be able to almost zone out a bit. Cops don’t spend the day sat in the police station watching Eastenders or anything like that. These televisions might be used for the 20 minutes or so that they manage to get a break. Cops don’t often even get the 45 minute breaks that they are entitled to.

“Officers need to be looked after. We’re coming to work and we’re putting absolutely everything on the line, working all the hours that we do, and then not getting too much rest and reward for it. Officers are having their rest days cancelled, they’re working in traumatic incidents, so let’s just let them have a TV and rest.”

Andy said the Federation understood the force’s need to save money, with the prospect of shrinking budgets. But he urged decision makers to look elsewhere to make savings.

He added: “We have urged the force to keep the TVs in places like canteens and the communal areas. We understand the force’s position that they’ve got over 100 TVs and they don’t need them all. But they can keep the TVs in the places where the cops need them most, such as the canteens and the rest areas.

“People are absolutely incensed about it all. They can’t believe that we’re doing this at a time when we’re trying to save £10,000. We can save it other ways. We need to look at where else we’re spending the money – and it isn’t on TVs and radios.”