This July we (Gary Thwaite from Civil Nuclear Police Federation and Stuart Cowan from British Transport Police Federation) will pull on our walking boots and hike from Cockermouth in the Lake District (where Gary is based) to West Dulwich in London (where Stuart is based).

That’s a distance of more than 500 kilometres and we’re aiming to walk it in two weeks.

We’re expecting excruciating blisters, pulled muscles and aching joints. However, our suffering will be nothing compared to the distress experienced by those of our colleagues who face debilitating mental health challenges each year.

Research reveals rates of PTSD in the UK police service are almost five times higher than in the UK population. 90% of police workers in The Job, The Life study had experienced trauma, and one in five of these reported symptoms of either PTSD or complex-PTSD.

They are the reason why we are undertaking this extreme physical and mental challenge this summer. They are the reason the money we raise from doing it will be donated to the not-for-profit organisation, PTSD999.

https://www.ptsd-999.com

Please support us if you can. Thank you.