The Police Federation of England and Wales acknowledges today’s State of Policing report, but we are deeply concerned that it underplays the reality of frontline policing and the strain our members face every day.

Progress on workloads, welfare, officer care and the Police Covenant remains glacial and too often only shifts after a crisis. That is neither acceptable nor sustainable.

With new data showing a clear link between misconduct processes and police officer deaths by suicide, His Majesty's Inspectorate must ensure that a focus on this when looking at issues around police misconduct. Accountability and welfare must go hand in hand — one cannot be pursued at the expense of the other.

The report itself highlights the challenges: unmanageable investigative workloads, the daily risk of violence against officers, and the shameful reality that 90% of funding for police treatment centres comes directly from officers’ own pockets rather than from government or forces.

Challenges, however, need solutions, and if these annual assessments identify failings but cannot mandate chief officers to implement solutions, they risk becoming meaningless.

Government and policing leaders must finally deliver the Police Covenant in full, properly fund and mandate welfare provision, and put officer care at the heart of reform. Anything less will fail both officers and the public they serve.

Tiff Lynch, PFEW National Chair, said: “The findings and issues raised in this report are disturbing and shaming. Officers are drowning under workloads, facing increasing daily violence, and are even paying 90% of the cost of their own rehab out of their own pockets.

"In this context, it is easy to understand why many officers have simply copped enough. Unless government and policing leaders put officer welfare and support at the heart of reform, the service will continue to fail both its workforce and the public."