Police Family Liaison officers provide a vital link between the families and police during police investigations.

They are serving police officers or detectives who are specially trained to offer immediate support to people during what is usually a period of great anxiety and grief.

Their primary objective is to support family members and provide a two-way communication channel between the family and police, especially the lead investigator.

Family Liaison Officers, known within the police as FLOs, are most often appointed to support major investigations involving sudden death such as murder and road traffic collisions.

They work very closely with senior investigating officers to ensure family members are updated on developments in a timely and sensitive way and also to gather evidence and information from the family in a way that preserve the integrity of the investigation.

FLOs can also act as a bridge between the families and third parties such as the Coroner, Victim Support and even the media in some cases.

To become a FLO, the police officer must undertake a relevant FLO course. These are currently devised by the National Police Improvement Agency (NPIA) and meet the standards set out by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

The FLO will receive on-going training thereafter and the role is undertaken on a voluntary basis in addition to their day-to-day duties.