Wellbeing watchlist: five challenges for UK policing post Covid-19

The pandemic has changed both what the police do and how they do it, with potential long-lasting consequences for not only the relationship between the public and the police, but for police officers themselves. Even before Covid-19, police officers reported a higher incidence of mental health problems associated with work than other professions. By the end of 2020 the early signs of an increasing toll on police wellbeing from policing the pandemic were already beginning to emerge. This short blog summarises findings on 5 themes: officer safety, impact on the frontline, home-working, personal impacts, and negative perceptions of the police.