Coroner raises concerns after death of student police officer

Anugrah Abraham, known as Anu, a trainee police officer from Bury with West Yorkshire Police (WYP), was found dead in woodland in Radcliffe in March 2023.
An inquest into the death of the 21-year-old at Rochdale Coroners’ Court heard he had been struggling with his job and his associated university course.
After hearing the evidence, senior coroner for Manchester North, Joanne Kearsley, noted the medical cause of death was by hanging and recorded his death as suicide.
Following the inquest, Ms Kearsley has set out a number of areas of concern in a Reports to Prevent Future Deaths file.
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One concern raised was that there are no registered mental health nurses recruited into WYP occupational health unit (OHU).
It was also noted that, following Anu’s death, there was no investigation into the quality of care afforded to him by the OHU within WYP.
The lack of investigation meant learning from deaths in order to prevent future deaths was not addressed.
The report added: “The court heard as to the increase in mental health issues amongst police officers nationally.
“Despite this, the question of what imminent adjustments should be made or considered once an officer discloses suicidal thoughts, was unclear.
“This is before an OHU appointment.
“In this case Anu’s mental deterioration was reportedly directly linked to his role as a police officer.
“It is acknowledged that this is a difficult issue and there will be issues such as confidentiality to consider.”
It was also recorded in the report that the degree programme caused students on this cause high level of stress.
But there are now different routes into policing, and it is no longer required to undertake a degree.
Ms Kearsley ordered that action needs to be taken by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, College of Policing and WYP to prevent future deaths.
Each body have been given until March 12 to respond to the report with a timetable of action.
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Source – INDIA TV