Chaired by Chief Constable Rachel Bacon, the UK Police Lead for Mental Health, the forum brought together Mental Health Leads from police forces across England and Wales, alongside representatives from the College of Policing.
Addressing Racial Hate Crimes in Mental Health Settings
Haley Williams, Cygnet’s Co-production, Recovery & Innovation Manager, and Ummarah Sheikh, Head of Occupational Therapy at Cygnet Hospital Stevenage, shared the results of a Quality Improvement (QI) project focused on reducing racism toward staff.
Developed at Cygnet Hospital Stevenage, in collaboration with Cygnet’s People’s Council and Multicultural Network, the project aimed to help improve understanding amongst patients and staff that racism towards staff constitutes a hate crime, which is reportable to the police.
The approach fostered a supportive, educational approach which saw the local police regularly visiting the hospital to meet with patients and staff to explain what constitutes a crime, why it is important for people to understand the impact of their words or actions, and what can be done to prevent it, or report it.
The initiative has strengthened ties between hospital staff, service users, and local neighbourhood police.
PCSO Lewis Thomson (Hate Crime Office for Stevenage and North Herts Police) spoke positively about the opportunity to raise awareness, improve relationships and help people understand the impact of racism in mental health settings.
The project has fostered a more supportive environment, with internal data showing:
- Staff felt more confident to report racist incidents, with 82% believing there would be consequences for racial abuse.
- Since Nov 2023, the number of staff believing that support following incidents of racism is adequate almost doubled.
- Following the project at Stevenage there was an increase in reporting of racist or discriminatory incidents, with staff feeling more empowered to do so.
- However, the project also saw an overall reduction in the number of racist incidents, indicating greater understanding and positive relationships being fostered at the service.
The team is currently developing a staff support framework, including a police support pathway, which Cygnet intends to roll out nationwide in collaboration with the NPCC.
Community Crisis Management and Lived Experience
Raf Hamaizia, Expert by Experience Lead, presented alongside a Metropolitan Police Officer from Croydon, about managing community mental health crises through a “community policing” lens.
Raf said: “Lived experience can contribute greatly to policing in the context of mental health, from training to de-escalation.
“I was able to give real life examples including a recent one that happened over Christmas where I worked with local police officers to de-escalate a situation and supported a person to hospital without the use of force.
“This outcome happened, despite a three hour stand-off that was filmed and shared on social media. The start of the incident recorded on video showed a group of youths being hostile towards the police, but ended with them thanking the police for managing the matter with such professionalism and care.”
Looking Forward
Cygnet remains committed to further collaboration with the NPCC and UK police forces to champion best practices, reduce restrictive practices, and ensure a safer, more respectful environment for all.