Free Addiction Support For Officers

Hampshire Police officers and officers across the country can now access free, 24/7 support for addictions of any kind.

The Police Federation of England and Wales has partnered with Help 4 Addiction and Rehubs to support members who are struggling with addiction. The Rehubs app, available on the Google Play Store and the App Store, offers free access to police officers when they enter the code POLFED under the ‘use company code’ prompt at the bottom of the payment page.

Hampshire Police Federation Chair Zoë Wakefield said it was an important resource for her colleagues.

She said: “Police officers are human beings and are not immune from becoming addicted to all types of things. We go through a lot of trauma in our work so it’s not uncommon for people to self-medicate with alcohol or other substances, or turn to gambling.

“We’ve seen quite a few officers with gambling addictions, or become addicted to prescription medication. Officers have a lot to cope with and may also have got stuff going on in their personal lives.

“There is a lot of help and support there, but it’s not always easy to bring yourself to make that step. There’s some types of addiction that can get officers into trouble misconduct-wise, so actually having that help is really positive and hopefully our colleagues that need it will use it.”