A New Dawn at Napo?

Despite an astonishingly low turnout in the recent ballot for General Secretary, I notice there are definite signs of change afoot at Napo. In launching her campaign for National Chair, Katie Lomas has taken the bold decision to start blogging and enter into direct dialogue with members. 

To be fair she has been an active contributor on Facebook for some time and it will be interesting to see if a new era of realism, openness and honesty is to be ushered in at Napo and that seeks to emulate the fine example set by Mike Rolfe in his recent bid for election as General Secretary:-

 
Publishing today…

I have been writing about all things Napo for some time, some articles have been published and some haven’t! Here I intend to bring together things I’ve published along with thoughts and discussion about my life as a Napo Officer. I want to make it easier to have discussions with more people so comments will be open on most of my articles and posts. Please use comments wisely, I will not be moderating them constantly but will remove any that are a personal attack on anyone or that I believe are against Napo’s objects.

I am publishing my blog now as I submit my nomination for Napo National Chair. There are many challenges ahead for Napo members, whichever employer they work for and there are many challenges for us as a Union. I have invested four years in my role as Vice Chair of Napo and have learned so much in that time. My second and final term of office is almost over but I have work yet to do. Our Trade Union is a precious and valuable thing but in recent years it has seen attack after attack. We have weathered many storms and there will be more to come. My vision for Napo in the future is as a vibrant and independent Trade Union and Professional Association, one that can adapt quickly to changing demands, both external and internal. I want to see a Union that communicates with members, collectively and individually. I want to hear a strong voice representing the professions of our members in Probation and Family Courts.

I am not unaware of the difficulties that we face. Napo reps are seeing workloads increase in both their work and trade union roles. Changes in both Probation and Cafcass have resulted in us losing many of our most experienced reps and activists (although some stay on as retired members). We need to revitalise our branches, making sure that reps and branch officers can work efficiently, using all of the central support available to them. We need to make sure that our NEC and it’s committees work well, allowing members to directly participate in setting the agenda and priorities for the Union. The most common question I hear from members is “what is happening about xxxx”. We need to make sure that members have access to information in a variety of media.

For lots of reasons it feels as though we are at an important point in time. In Probation we have the Justice Select Committee confirming all we in Napo have said about the devastating effects of TR. In Cafcass there is acknowledgement that workloads need urgent attention and that the service is being held up largely by goodwill and dedication of staff. PBNI (Probation Board of Northern Ireland) avoided the worst of the disastrous attempts at reform of Probation but struggles around workloads and protections for staff continue. With so much happening Napo needs to capitalise on every opportunity. We must make the most of the position we are in.

I look forward to discussing these issues with you further – feel free to share your thoughts in comments…

Katie Lomas