In 2013, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) commissioned an independent evaluation of
the Oldham Phone Triage/RAID Pilot Project. This evaluation report covers the period of
the six month pilot from 02.12.2013 to 31.05.14.
Lord Adebowale’s recent Independent Commission on Mental Health and Policing (2013)
concluded that mental health represents one of the most significant and complex
challenges for policing in the UK; addressing this matter is core business and should
become a priority in all future service planning and delivery at a local level.
The Sainsbury Centre (2008) identified that nationally, 15% of all incidents dealt with by
the police include the presence of significant mental health difficulties and problems. The
report highlighted that police officers do not typically have ready access to sufficient
additional information that would support their decision-making in these types of cases.
Officers also felt that their training did not always adequately prepare them for this area of
work.
In February 2014, a national Crisis Care Concordat was signed by more than 20
organisations in England in a bid to drive up standards of care for people in police custody.
The Concordat, seeks to build on other announcements on mental health care, notably
liaison and diversion schemes, street triage and the national Mental Health Action Plan
(2014).
GMP and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Greater Manchester
(PCCGM) have been instrumental in setting up a Mental Health Strategy Group to
coordinate and improve mental health and policing across Greater Manchester. Mental
health and the need to protect vulnerable people have been given major status in the
Police and Crime Plan 2013-16 for Greater Manchester (PCCGM, 2013).
At a recent consultation event, Tony Lloyd (Police and Crime Commissioner for Greater
Manchester) stated: ‘People suffering mental health problems deserve the best service
and the only way to achieve that is for the police, NHS and other agencies to pool
resources and work together’ (PCCGM, 2014: online)