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Nottinghamshire detective wins award for wellbeing projects

A detective who gives up her spare time to boost the wellbeing of colleagues has won recognition for her “invaluable” work.

DC Kate Taylor has worked at Nottinghamshire Police for the past 20 years and has been part of the force’s ‘Wellbeing Champion’ initiative since 2021.

Health and wellbeing is a priority for the force. As such, a number of volunteer wellbeing champions are deployed across the organisation to offer a listening ear and to signpost colleagues to relevant support services should they need.

During her time as a wellbeing champion, Kate has worked to improve the wellbeing of not just members of her team in the Public Protection unit – but also the wellbeing of colleagues across the organisation.

She introduced Canicross – an activity that involves running with a dog through the woods to boost a person’s fitness and mental wellbeing. Kate worked with a local trainer to offer a police discount for sessions and then promoted the initiative via the force Intranet.

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Another example of her efforts was challenging colleagues to run the equivalent of a 516-mile scenic route around the north coast of Scotland. Using an app that logs the distance each team member has run, colleagues could see each other’s progress and encourage each other to complete the distance – further enhancing their physical and mental health.

She has also promoted various force-led initiatives, including encouraging staff to book their flu vaccines and arranging for wellbeing dogs to be brought into her own department to boost the morale of her Public Protection colleagues, who often deal with traumatic and difficult cases.

In recognition of her efforts and achievements, Kate was crowned winner of the Wellbeing category at the Nottinghamshire Police Force Awards, held on 25 April.

Kate was nominated for the award by Detective Sergeant Amy Revill, who said: “A career in the police force can often be extremely stressful with constant exposure to situations and trauma that most people never have to face.

“It’s essential officers protect their physical and mental health – and Kate is an invaluable asset to the organisation in this respect.”

Kate said she felt honoured to win the Wellbeing award.

She said: “I am proud to be a Wellbeing Champion and even prouder to receive the award.

“As a detective I am aware of the stressful and traumatic situations police officers and staff are exposed to, sometimes daily. Taking responsibility to look after your mental health is therefore paramount, and this motivated me to support my colleagues to do so.

“Mental resilience and good physical health, in my opinion, is vital to being a productive and successful member of Nottinghamshire Police. In order to serve the public it is important that we also look after ourselves and each other.”

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