‘We will support you in stressful times’

ESSEX Police Federation has paid tribute to its officers who “knuckled down” and got on with the job following the terrorist attack on Westminster.

Officers in Essex were put on 12-hour shifts following the attack, in which Met PC Keith Palmer was killed.

PC Palmer was unarmed as he ran towards danger and sadly made the ultimate sacrifice.

Essex Police Federation Chairman Steve Taylor said: “It’s always dreadfully sad when you hear about a colleague who turned up for work expecting to go home to his wife and his family, his partner and his family, and then events overtook them and unfortunately there will be no more going home for him.

“It’s always sad and it does bring into focus what colleagues do across Essex, noticeably, turning up for work and putting on the uniform and getting the job done, even more so now when we find ourselves on extended duties for exigency reasons.

“What really noticeable is the lack of complaint about the necessity, they just knuckle down and get on with it, and that’s what they do.”

Mr Taylor also said the Federation was there to support officers if the stress of the job became too much.

“We find ourselves working those longer hours in more stressful situations, it’s right that we keep an extra eye on one another,” he said.

“But out there, just looking after one another, watching for those extra stressful signs that might appear. Just because we need people on the front on 12 hour duties doesn’t mean that if that becomes too much we can’t step out and do something more for those individuals.

“So keep an eye on each other, and trust that the Federation’s got your back as well, and that the job are doing the right thing for the right reasons.”