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Blue Light Programme

Working in emergency services has always been challenging. But the coronavirus pandemic has made it even harder. Our 2021 research shows that 69% of emergency responders feel their mental health has deteriorated due to the pandemic.

Our Blue Light Programme is here for everyone in the emergency services: Staff, volunteers, and employers, as well as friends and family. We're developing new support and information to help you cope during the pandemic and beyond. Below, you can learn about available information, support, and training and discover more about the programme.

Blue Light Together

Your mental health support hub

Blue Light Together is a website designed for people working and volunteering in the ambulance, police, fire and search and rescue services. We’ve designed it to help you, your friends and your family find the right mental health support. On the website, you’ll find:

  • specialised information and advice
  • real-life stories and tips from colleagues working in the field
  • guides on how employers can support their team’s wellbeing.

We developed Blue Light Together in partnership with:

  • The Royal Foundation
  • The Ambulance Staff Charity
  • Police Care UK
  • The Fire Fighters Charity

Blue Light Together is here for you, whether you’re currently serving, retired, frontline or back-office staff. 

Visit Blue Light Together

Image credit: Metropolitan Police

Order free resources

We've developed some resources to help get the conversation about mental health going in your workplace.

Our poster packs are tailored for each service and free to order.

Order a pack here

Support for emergency services employers

For the first time ever, emergency service senior leaders have declared that mental health is a priority.

They’ve signed the Mental Health at Work Commitment – a promise to bring mental health support to emergency responder staff and volunteers.​

And now, you can support your teams by getting involved too.

Take action now

Image credit: West Midlands Police

Image credit: London Ambulance Service

Information made for you

We've got lots of information to help you manage your mental health. This includes information on coping with the effects of working through the pandemic and places you can go for support. 

Whether you're in a behind-the-scenes or frontline role, we've got information for anyone working in the ambulance, police, fire and search and rescue services.​

Read our information

Emergency services staff and volunteers

You can play your role in challenging the stigma around mental health in your workplace.

We used to recruit Blue Light Champions to help us do this. We don't run this formally anymore. But there are still lots of ways to help improve mental health support for you and your colleagues.

Help improve wellbeing at work

Image credit: London Ambulance Service

Training

We developed training courses specifically for people working in the emergency services. Our courses teach how to:

  • manage your wellbeing at work
  • build resilience
  • support colleagues after traumatic incidents.

Our latest training was developed to support you through the pandemic’s unique challenges.

See our courses

Your stories

Staff, volunteers and employers from emergency services have shared their experiences, tips and advice about looking after your mental health at work.

We’re continuing to publish new stories regularly on Blue Light Together. And we’ve got older stories from 2015 – 2019 too.

Read real stories

Image credit: London Fire Brigade

About the programme

Our Blue Light Programme is here to support the mental health of emergency responders in response to the pandemic.

From 2015 to 2019, 1000s of responders received information, resources, training and support through the Blue Light Programme. And our network of local Minds.

We're running the programme until June 2022. It'll build on our previous work.

Learn more about the programme

Image credit: London Ambulance Service

Other ways to get involved

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