Federation working with Force on Commonwealth Games policing operation

22 July 2022

West Midlands Police are gearing up for the biggest operation in the history of the Force as the final countdown for the Commonwealth Games gets underway.

The Games are being held in Birmingham between 28 July and 7 August and will be the biggest sporting and cultural event to be held in the region with tens of thousands of people either taking part or watching. The policing operation has already started and the Force has begun to welcome Mutual Aid officers into Force to join its own officers.

The Force is responsible for security throughout the Games and the Police Federation will be playing a major role protecting the welfare of its members during the massive operation.

West Midlands Police Federation’s Commonwealth Games lead Jon Nott said the branch was working closely with the Force to ensure snags are picked up early but warned the welfare of officers had to remain a priority.

He said: “We are aware that there are huge demands being placed on officers throughout the Games. 

“They will be working long hours without many rest days in that period and if this heatwave continues it is a case of ensuring that supervisors and commanders consider the welfare of their staff with extra breaks and extra liquids if necessary to make sure they stay hydrated.

“Our concerns are mainly around exhaustion and burn-out because of the long shifts so we would just encourage supervisors to give breaks throughout those shifts.

“We are going to be really busy but we want to ensure, where we can, that officers are being looked after when they are on duty”

Jon said the Police Federation would be available to help and support members throughout the Games.

He said: “Fed reps will be available to contact through the normal channels but any officers who have Games-specific concerns will also be able to raise them with their commanders or via the logistics operations centre. 

“We will have Federation reps working closely with them to try to resolve any issues as and when they arise.”

Jon said the West Midlands Police operation was now coming together ahead of the opening ceremony. 

He said: “It is great to see all the internal logistics starting to come together and there has been a real influx of West Midlands Police officers and staff coming to the Games so we are really seeing things starting to take shape now from an actual point of view rather than just the planning phase.

“In terms of the deployment itself, we will have a number of Federation reps out and about on deployment every day throughout the Games.

“We will also have the Police Federation welfare vans out and about around the different venues so we will be checking in with members, asking how they are, finding out how their shifts are going and discussing any issues or concerns that they might raise.

“And, of course, the welfare vans are there to give officers the chance to have a brew and a bit of chocolate or a snack.

“We will also be going into West Midlands Police stations to see to business as usual and speak to the officers who are backfilling within Force and ensure it is continuing to provide a service and normal everyday policing for the public outside of the Games. 

“We are aware that there are still some issues within Force and that there are some postings still going out. 

“We have raised that with the Force so hopefully everyone will very soon have clarification on where they need to be, when they are going to be picked up and how they are going to get to the various venues from their locations.

“So, it is all starting to come together and it is just some of the finer details that have to be sent out to those officers so they are able to support the Games to the best of their abilities.

“And we are working together with the Games team to try to ensure that the deployment goes as smoothly as possible for the officers involved with this event.”