Peter Turner is an experienced specialist with a demonstrated history spanning over 30 years of working within high secure and forensic mental health settings. He is skilled in the design and delivery of violence-reduction and least-restrictive clinical and operational strategies to predict, prevent and manage acute behavioural disturbances. Pete has extensive experience of working with some of the most vulnerable and violent groups who required enhanced trauma informed support to proactively deliver safe recovery-focused care within very challenging settings and unique set of circumstances. He provided direct oversight, support and supervision to multi-disciplinary teams to develop proactive cultures and whole system approaches to provide safe, responsive and consistent levels of care. Pete has developed a sound knowledge base and understanding of best practice guidance, relevant laws and legislation, biological and social influences and associated risks pertaining to this complex subject matter. He has gained vast experience of designing theoretical and physical PMVA training programmes for hospital, care and public authority environments.

He Chaired the high secure service PMVA manual steering group (2014 – 2021) with the responsibility of developing a training manual, overseeing and maintaining a safe and consistent approach across all the UK high secure estates, including numerous NHS services and private care environments that worked under the auspices of this developed model. Part of this essential work was designing and testing of all physical restraint procedures to ensure the selected skills were legally and ethically safe for inclusion into the hierarchy of response options specific for the chosen service line population. Pete has developed effective leadership skills to lead and manage large service improvement projects to reduce violence, Long-Term Segregation (LTS) and the unnecessary use of restrictive interventions. During this time,

Pete’s high clinical and operational responsibilities extended to developing individualised and group care pathways that significantly improved the quality of life and recovery for some of the most restricted and vulnerable service users. As well as being available 24/7 to provide expert advice to service leads, clinical teams and other stakeholders. Pete has led in the design, innovation and testing of high secure escort vehicles, emergency response equipment, mechanical restraints, de-escalation furniture and environments, redevelopment programmes to improve environmental safety, personal safety and therapeutic alliance, large scale hospital rebuild projects and purpose-built training centres. Pete has extensive experience of the operational responsibility of leading teams and the decision-making process to advise the operational command structure in the management and resolution of high-risk incidents involving individuals and large-scale disturbances with serious and sustained intent of harming themselves and/or others.

Pete has extensive teaching and operational experience of the use of specialised equipment i.e., de-escalation safety POD’s, handcuffs, mechanical restraint devices, public order equipment, method of entry and crime scene preservation. Pete’s efficiency in the analysis of incident data and reviewing of CCTV and body-worn camera footage was essential to the continuous cycle of learning and improvement of practice. His combined expertise was regularly called upon to lead/support localised serious incident reviews and to provide evidence during legal proceedings. Pete’s rounded expertise was a constant source of support to other UK and International public authorities (HMP, Police, Governments and regulatory bodies etc.). More recently, and through such collaborative work, Pete made significant contributions to the reduction of violence and the use of physical restraints (including prone restraint) within custody settings. Furthermore, contributing author of the ‘Report on the efficacy and safety of the Bolawrap (2020)’ instructed by Emergency Protection Ltd.

During his career, Pete sat on many national groups including the NHS England expert reference group to reduce the use of restrictive practice within commissioned mental health services and the College of Policing mental health and restraint expert reference group. He was until recently an external examiner at the University of South Wales for their BSc (Hons) in Professional Practice (Violence Reduction). Pete has provided advice to many leading experts and public authorities during national policy writing, best practice guidance reviews, individual clinical care pathway reviews, procedural and operational consultations, training programme reviews, general advice/support to multi-disciplinary teams, organisations and trainers etc. Pete’s greatest success was his continuous grass roots approach of remaining clinical and operationally credible throughout his entire career.