Campaigning guide

Mind's new guide 'Police and mental health - how to get it right locally' has the potential to make a genuine difference to the relationships between the police and people with experience of mental distress. It's vital that the guide is publicised as far and wide as possible.

Contact your local police force

We're encouraging people to contact their local Chief Constable in order to draw their attention to the guide, a copy of which they will be receiving directly from Mind.

Below is a model letter that you can use to contact your local force by post or email; please feel free to modify and personalise the letter to make an even bigger impact. If you have personal experiences of dealing with the police you might like to also include an account of these to emphasise how important it is for officers to take forward this work.

You can find the contact details for your local force by either downloading this spreadsheet (address your letters to Chief Constable), or by using this website to find their electronic contact details (look for the 'Contact Us' link on your force's website).

Sample letter

Dear Chief Constable,

I am writing to you to draw your attention to the new guide published by Mind, 'Police and mental health - how to get it right locally'. I believe that your force will have already received a copy of the document.

I believe that this guide is a useful resource and that the examples of good practice that it highlights should be replicated all over the country in order to improve relationships between the police and people with experience of mental distress. In particular, it shows how beneficial joint work with local voluntary organisations can be in this area.

I would strongly encourage you to have a look at the guide and to consider whether any of the schemes, programmes and methods that it discusses could be adopted locally. I believe this would help to make sure that the police in your force understand the needs of people with experience of mental distress, which in turn would help to increase trust and co-operation towards the police amongst such people.

I look forward to hearing how you will be taking forward the recommendations and ideas included in the guide and about any successes you oversee in this area.

Yours sincerely,

What else you can do

We would be very interested to hear back from you if you receive a response. We're also still keen to know of any good practice in your area that you might be aware of, either from the police or from voluntary organisations working in this area. You can contact us at action@mind.org.uk 

Thanks for your help.