Thank you so much to everyone who has supported our Divider Challenge, every single penny is so very much appreciated. Thank you 💟

The work that emergency service personnel do can mean individuals are exposed to some traumatic events. Across all of the emergency services; Fire Fighters, Police Officers and Ambulance personnel could individually experience between 400 - 600 traumatic events throughout their career. This does not include traumatic events they may experience as part of their personal life. To put that figure into context, the average person will experience up to four traumatic events in their lifetime.

The Fire Fighters Charity provide both physical and mental health support to UK Fire and Rescue Service personnel, and their families. Enabling individuals to continue doing a job they love doing - making someone's worst day just that little bit better.

25% of the general population will experience a mental health issue at some point in their life. Within emergency services (Fire, Police and Ambulance), this figure can be up to 69% - almost three times as many. But we're not very good at talking about how we're feeling, as emergency services personnel are focused on helping other, not themselves.

To increase awareness of mental health in the Fire Service sector and to reduce stigma that exists around having open and honest conversations about mental health, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service are starting the Divider Challenge.

Members of our fire service will be volunteering to be 'cuffed' to a Divider (a piece of fire service equipment) for a minimum of 24hrs and a maximum of 7 days. Individuals will carry the Divider around with them, for the allocated period of time, to be a physical representation of the weight a mental health issue can cause. It is hoped this will invite interest and plenty of positive, open and honest conversations about mental health - not just within the fire service but within our local communities.

If we can raise money for the Fire Fighters Charity as well as raising awareness of mental health/reducing the stigma surrounding open and honest conversations about mental health, this will help provide continued support to Fire and Rescue Service personnel across the UK.

Many thanks for taking the time to read about our Divider Challenge, and our sincere thanks for your support.