This year's theme, ‘Fit Mind: Fit for Duty. Resilience, Wellbeing and Performance in Every Policing Role’ is built around a simple but powerful idea: when we strengthen resilience and wellbeing, we strengthen policing itself.  A fit mind is not just good for individuals; it is critical for organisational performance, public confidence and community safety. 

In short, a fit mind is an extremely important piece of kit to bring to work each day.

Resilience is not just about coping with adversity, but about sustaining performance, professionalism and wellbeing throughout an entire career.

Physical fitness has always been visible in policing. It is fair to say that the concept of mental fitness – or the lack thereof – has been the poor cousin when it comes to funding and active attention. Thankfully it’s a stigma that policing entities world-wide are working to abandon in favour of treating mental fitness as critical to operational effectiveness as bi-annually smashing the P-C-T.

Mental fitness supports sound judgement, decision-making, de-escalation and community trust. Healthy Police staff perform better and remain effective for longer.

Wellbeing is not solely a frontline issue. Everyone within policing contributes to public safety and organisational success.

Essentially, resilience is a team sport – individual resilience multiplied = collective resilience. Looking after colleagues is a professional responsibility.

Our ‘Repay the Risk’ pay campaign this year spoke directly to the core of our conference theme. 

We asked members to ‘tell it like it is’:

• tell the politicians what life is truly like out there on the front line they so blithely refer to in their promises; 
• tell the public how much of ourselves we give in the ‘line of duty’;
• tell what it looks and feels and smells like when “ordinary” people step up to do extraordinary things every day.

Our members bared their souls in accounts that were often graphic, violent, traumatic and deathly. They were extraordinarily moving.

Many have told us and written in postcards to politicians that they had seen things that will haunt them forever. At times these accounts were overwhelming and in that they exposed the “ordinariness” of their reality. 

There’s a disconnect when we need to reveal tales of blood and trauma to get the attention we need, but we cannot, and we will not, give up.

Here’s the reality of policing in 2026:

• Increasing demand and complexity
• Exposure to trauma and distressing incidents
• Online harms and investigations
• Public scrutiny and rapid media cycles
• Recruitment and retention challenges
• The need to sustain long careers in a demanding profession

I know many of you here have experienced critical incidents, injuries, disasters, fatalities and major investigations. Resilience to these is not about being unaffected – it’s about having the tools to adapt, truly recover and continue to serve as professionally and safely as possible – for you, your family and the public we protect.

No officer or Police employee should feel they are expected to do it alone. Psychological safety is as important as physical safety, and good leaders create an environment where conversations about wellbeing happen before problems morph into crisis.

A resilient workforce is not one where nobody struggles.

It is one where nobody struggles alone.

That is particularly important for the association, and during this conference we will hear from New Zealand Police the active steps being taken through their wellness programme – something they believe to be a revolution in the care of Police staff, moving wellness from a “benevolent” focus to a “strength-based” focus. 

That approach helps retain experienced staff, reduce harm and deliver better outcomes for the public.

Creating a healthier policing environment is not just the responsibility of leaders, managers, or the organisation itself.

It belongs to all of us.

Every one of us can check in on a colleague.

Every one of us can help normalise conversations about mental wellbeing.

Every one of us can challenge the idea that seeking help is somehow a sign of weakness.

In our line of work no one gets through an entire career untouched by difficult experiences.

My hope is that we leave this conference with practical ideas, renewed energy, and a shared commitment to putting wellbeing at the centre of how we support our people.

Not because it is fashionable.

Not because it is an organisational priority.

But because looking after our people is fundamental to good policing.

If our members are fit in mind, they are better equipped to support each other, serve their communities, and sustain long, rewarding careers.

So, as we begin this conference, let us challenge ourselves to think about what resilience means in practice, what wellbeing looks like in our workplaces, and what each of us can do to strengthen both.

Because when we build a culture that supports the wellbeing of every member of Police, we strengthen policing itself.

Thank you.

Ngā mihi nui.