A West Midlands trainee detective who accessed vital help from the Police Federation’s Welfare Support Programme (WSP) says counselling was a ‘100 per cent a lifeline’ at a time when she needed it most.

Mother-of-two Joanne Hadley (38) says that she ‘dreads to think’ where she would be today if she had not received counselling from the programme, which is run by the Defence Medical Welfare Service (DMWS) and provides specialist mental health support for Federation members.

Joanne’s comments come shortly after the Police Federation of England and Wales announced its funding for the programme has been extended for another year.

“It was around 12 months ago now, I just fell apart. I think two decades' worth of trauma and stress, both personally and professionally, had finally caught up with me. I love my job but all of a sudden I hated going to work - in fact, the thought of walking through those doors and into work, I just couldn’t do it anymore. That’s when I knew something just wasn’t right,” explained Joanne, whose husband Dave is a West Midlands Police Federation conduct and performance lead and WSP liaison officer.

“I felt really out of control and I needed support there and then, not six months down the line, I needed support then. I wasn’t sleeping at night, I’d started to grind my teeth and the worse bit was my whole family was being impacted.

“My family had started to see the change in my personality and it actually led to my daughter sleepwalking. There was also one morning that I couldn’t even take my daughter to school because of how I was feeling.”

Following advice from Dave, Joanne decided to reach out to the WSP.

“I phoned that afternoon and by the next day, I’d got an appointment. And after just one session I felt loads better, it was exactly what I needed there and then,” continued Joanne.

“I think that’s what the WSP gives you, support right there, right then, when you need it. It’s that quickness. When you’re having a breakdown - which I now know I was having - you don’t have the time to wait for an appointment.

“They are so flexible too, their service fitted around me, not me working around them.”

Joanne, who was signed off work for four months, had weekly support sessions from the WSP, followed by six weeks of counselling from fully qualified professionals. 

“I knew I’d been spiralling and had reached out to others for support, like my GP, who just wanted to prescribe me medication. Others just wanted to get me back to work, that was their focus, not my mental health,” said Joanne.

“If I’d gone through all of that without support from the WSP, I’d dread to think where I’d be now.”

Having received the support, Joanne says she now knows the signs to look out for, so she can prevent herself from burning out again in the future.

Thanks to the help and support received by the WSP, Joanne returned back to work and has continued her detective training.

“I’m fortunate that my husband is a Federation representative and is heavily involved with the WSP but if that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t have known about the programme,” Joanne added.

“I want to shout about the WSP from the rooftops, I want people to know it’s there so they can use it too. I would recommend it to everyone and I would definitely not think twice about using their service again in the future if I ever needed it.”

Joanne is among 500 members who have received ongoing mental health support through the Defence Medical Welfare Service, with the WSP specifically providing:

·  Practical and mental support

·  Clinical assessments and dedicated counselling

·  Person-centred support (via telephone or face-to-face)

·  Access to fully trained and accredited professionals

·  Independent and confidential support

·  Referrals to appropriate follow-on specialist support.

Members who would like to know more about the WSP or feel they need support from the programme should contact the West Midlands Police Federation branch officials or workplace reps.