Coroner raises multiple concerns with West Yorkshire Police, College of Policing and National Police Chiefs Council after death of PC Anugrah Abraham

Wednesday 15 January 2025

Paul Clark of the Garden Court Inquests and Inquiries Team represented the bereaved family in the Inquest, instructed by Daniel Cooper at Imran Khan & Partners Solicitors.

The below content is reproduced from an Imran Khan & Partners release.

Press Coverage: BBC News

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The Senior Coroner for Manchester North has made a report raising her concerns arising from the death of PC Anugrah (‘Anu’) Abraham. Anu was a student police officer at West Yorkshire Police when, on 4 March 2023,  he took his own life, at the age of just 21 years. An Inquest into his death concluded on 29 October 2024.

The Prevention of Future Deaths Report outlines the Inquest’s factual findings that the force should have done more to support of Anu through his crisis, when:

  • On 24 September 2022, Anu was referred to Occupational Health (“OHU”) – the waiting time to be seen was three months. He was not seen until 15 December 2022. The referral had been for a back injury, but also his mental health. There was an inadequate assessment of his mental health and a lack of consideration of any adjustments required, given his mental health issues were linked to his work and the Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA).

  • On 13 January 2023, Anu made direct contact with the OHU, where it was acknowledged he appeared to be in “intense mental distress.” Whilst he was spoken to again later that day, there was no plan documented that he would be seen or re-contacted by OHU, this appeared to be because Anu had made direct contact and it had not been a referral from a senior manager. Anu should have been offered a face-to-face appointment.

  • On 23 January, following further concerns about Anu’s work, he had a meeting with a District Sgt and was advised he was being placed on a further development plan. A subsequent email was sent to Anu by his Sgt setting out his development. During the course of this meeting, Anu indicated he felt suicidal. An urgent referral was made to OHU. The subsequent email to Anu in no way was reflective of a caring approach to an individual who was expressing suicidal thoughts.

  • Following this urgent referral to OHU, an appointment was offered for April 2023. Anu should have been offered an urgent face-to-face appointment.

The Report raises the following matters of concerns to the organisations involved in Anu’s employment:

National Police Chiefs Council and West Yorkshire Police (WYP)

  • The court heard that most OHU referrals within police forces now relate to mental health issues as opposed to physical health issues. Despite this, there are no specialist Registered Mental Health nurses recruited into WYP OHU. Indeed, the court heard the situation within WYP may be indicative of the national picture.

  • Following Anu’s death, there was no investigation into the quality of care afforded to him by the OHU within WYP. Hence, at the time of the Inquest, there had been no reflection by practitioners as to the quality of care provided and no learning in respect of processes and procedures. It was accepted that, following the Inquest, there were matters which would be considered. The lack of investigation meant learning from deaths, in order to prevent future deaths, was not addressed.

National Police Chiefs Council National Wellbeing Service

  • 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.

College of Policing

  • The court heard there are now different routes into policing and there is no longer a requirement to undertaken a degree. The court heard from a significant number of officers who had undertaken the PCDA. Many of the witnesses told the court of the impact this route into policing had on them at the time, including the levels of stress they incurred. The PCDA does continue to operate.

College of Policing and National Police Chiefs Council

  • Ensuring there is a full understanding across Police forces as to the PCDA, and the sharing of accurate information with all those involved in the management of student officers, so there are clear documented records and understanding as to how a student officer is progressing and whether they are likely to become an efficient constable.

  • Consideration of the Regulation 13 process for PCDA students and how this works in practice across forces.

The Prevention of Future Deaths Report has been addressed to the Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police, the Chief Constable of the National Police Chief’s Council, and the CEO of the College of Policing. They have 56 days to respond to the Coroner in writing.

Daniel Cooper, solicitor for the Family and Partner at Imran Khan and Partners, said:

The concerns raised by the Coroner in today’s Report reflect what Anu’s family have maintained throughout these Inquest proceedings, namely that West Yorkshire Police were not able to effectively respond to Anu’s repeated calls for support with his mental health. Their inability to support Anu comes at a time when more and more young police officers around the country are facing increasing stress and mental illness at work. Action must be taken by the force, and the Police Chiefs Council and College of Policing, to address the shortcomings identified in this awful case.” 

 You can download the report using the link here.

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