Inside the Force: 24/7

In a typical month, Cleveland Police can respond to over one thousand mental health related calls. It puts a massive strain on the officers in Middlesbrough Police Station.

On a Saturday night shift, PCs Jordan Vasey and James Boyd Bell are called to a suspected domestic incident but upon arrival the suspect is struggling to breathe and in need of medical help having taken cocaine. After checks by paramedics, the suspect is arrested and taken to custody.

At Middlesbrough Station, PCs Will Douglas and Katie Welford prepare to go on patrol. A call comes in about a domestic between a mother and daughter that has resulted in a garden gate being set alight. At the scene it soon becomes apparent that it is more of a mental health issue and the suspect is arrested and taken to custody where she can be checked and given support. In Custody Detention, Officer Gary arranges help for the suspect.

Outside custody a police van arrives with an agitated man who has been arrested on suspicion of assault. He resists coming out of the van and threatens to kick police. It takes seven officers to get him into custody where he claims to have an injured shoulder and demands to go to hospital. He is taken to be checked out but refuses to be seen and threatens to kill officers. It takes two police vans and yet more officers to get him back to custody.

In town a man is self-harming in the street. PCs Jonny Whitwell and Rosie Stonehouse attend but struggle to get through to the appropriate mental health teams. They face a long wait for help and with urgent calls stacking up in Force Control they are under pressure. An exasperated Jonny comments "Every job we go to usually has some sort of mental health issue attributed to them but we're not really the right people to do anything for them."

This year, police forces in England and Wales plan to ease the number of mental health callouts they respond to.