"When was the last time you actually ‘published’ or even tweeted about anything remotely positive ‘Jim’? Happy to contribute but you need to drop the shit cloud image first."
For many people of a certain age, mostly men it has to be said, the age of steam holds a particular fascination. With the end of Covid restrictions in sight and the weather improving, thoughts are naturally beginning to turn once more to the delights that can be found by retreating into the past.
With impeccable timing, an extremely enterprising group of videographers based on the Great Central Railway have created the third in a series of monochrome videos in the spirit of those wonderful British Transport Films of yesteryear produced by Edgar Anstey. For those unaware, it could have been crafted 60 years ago, not a week last Wednesday.
I'll just mention in passing that the GCR is no ordinary heritage steam railway being the only UK example of a preserved former Main Line, double-tracked and capable of line speeds of 60mph.
Quorn and Woodhouse Station
In the week that Quorn & Woodhouse marks the anniversary of its closure, this film takes a humorous slant on the characters that might have been found at a country railway station in its pre-preservation heyday, at a time when many of us are unable to be together to enjoy our hobby.
We are grateful for those additional photographic contributors who allowed us to use their footage for the making of this film. Ask a young boy what he wants to be when he grows up and he'll probably reply an engine driver, for the romance of the steam locomotive for many is unsurpassed, however, there are many more places on the railway where this enchantment can be found, as, with an entirely new narrative, "Station People" aims to tell.
We are all looking forward at getting back to the station, particularly to start work on the next film, watch this space.
HMPPS - 1 April 2021
ReplyDeleteUploaded an amended accessible version of The Target Operating Model for the Future of Probation Services in England & Wales.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/959743/HMPPS_-_Probation_Reform_Programme_-_Executive_Summary_-_Target_Operating_Model_-__English__-_09-02-2021.pdf
Introduction
DeleteThe Ministry of Justice is reforming probation. We will make changes to the probation system following careful consideration of the results of the consultation, ‘Strengthening probation, building confidence’, held in summer 2018.
Our plans
From 26 June 2021, the new probation service will be responsible for managing all those on a community order or licence following their release from prison in England and Wales.
The new probation service will also deliver unpaid work and behavioural change programmes in England and Wales.
Specialist organisations will continue to play a role in the probation system, delivering resettlement and rehabilitative services such as education, training and employment and accommodation.
There will be 12 probation areas across England and Wales, introducing 11 new probation areas in England, with existing arrangements remaining unchanged in Wales.
In England, each area will be overseen by a new dedicated Regional Probation Director who will provide strategic leadership and be responsible for the overall delivery and commissioning of probation services.
The Regional Probation Directors, along with the NPS Director in Wales, will work closely to ensure an effective, unified approach from pre-sentence stage in court through to management in the community.
We also intend to go further than set out in the consultation. We will take action to strengthen the standing of the probation workforce and also make changes that support continuous professional development.
Progress and updates
In February 2021, we published our Target Operating Model setting out how we anticipate the key features of the future model of probation services in England and Wales working once implemented, and providing an overview of what services will be in place as of June 2021. This replaces the Draft Target Operating Model published in March 2020.
In February 2021, we published revised draft National Standards alongside the target operating model to outline how we will support the new model from June 2021. We anticipate that these will be finalised in the spring.
In July 2020 the Probation Workforce Strategy was published.
We are providing updates for the reform programme in the monthly Probation change bulletin
In June 2020 the Ministry of Justice and HM Prison and Probation Service announced plans to take control of unpaid work and behavioural change programmes.
In June 2020 we launched the Dynamic Framework competition for charities and private sector organisations to compete for more than £100 million a year to run services such as education, employment and accommodation.
In March 2020 we published the Draft Target Operating Model, setting out the proposed future model of probation services in England and Wales after June 2021. In June 2020, we published an update document to explain changes to our plans for probation reform to reflect the impact of COVID-19.
In Wales offender management moved to the NPS in December 2019.
We invested £22 million to improve the delivery of prison resettlement services across England and Wales. These were rolled out from April 2019.
We have mandated regular face-to-face contact time between offenders and their probation officer.
We have put in place arrangements that allow us to extend community rehabilitation company (CRC) contracts so that we have the necessary time to get the transition to the new system right. We intend to use these arrangements to end contracts in June 2021.
We have decided to create a standalone probation area covering Greater Manchester and a revised North West area made up of Cheshire, Merseyside, Cumbria and Lancashire. The decision has been made in recognition of the significant caseload volumes in the original North-West region.
Poor Alan Duncan's airing his dirty y-fronts in a new book:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/apr/03/boris-johnson-a-clown-with-no-diplomacy-skills-says-ex-deputy-in-diaries
Sir Alan Duncan, the MP for Rutland and Melton from 1992 until the last election, said the prime minister was “a clown, a self-centred ego, an embarrassing buffoon, with an untidy mind and sub-zero diplomatic judgment”.
Johnson is said to have asked: “Why don’t they [other diplomats] take me seriously?” Duncan claims he replied: “Look in the f***ing mirror!”
May is also criticised in the diaries, with Duncan noting she has an apparent lack of personality on the campaign trail, and describing her as “a frightened rabbit, a cardboard cut-out, her social skills are sub-zero”.
He calls the home secretary, Priti Patel, “a nothing person, a complete and utter nightmare, the Wicked Witch of Witham”.
He also accuses another former prime minister, David Cameron, of being “glib”, and making too many appointments from a “narrow” group of close associates.
Never really understood the fascination with trains. Steam or any other kind.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the railways did bring us some great architecture. Not just the cathedral like stations such as York, but also the great buildings erected as grand hotels around or nearby the stations.
I think the architecture and buildings that sprung from the railways is often not recognised enough in its own right, and many are now just recognised as JD Wetherspoons pubs!
A lottery win would almost certainly see me taking a month long ride around the Russian underground system. Apart from the palatial stations, I believe there are many other works of art to be found within the tunnels themselves such as frescos and carvings.
Vodkas cheap too!
https://youtu.be/Hy7j__ldj-U
'Getafix
Thanks for responding on the train theme 'Getafix. The funny thing is, I lived right through the steam age and took not one jot of notice - we had a car and living in London meant travel was either on the tube, electric trains or buses.
DeleteSteam is really about heritage and living history, not the stuffed and mounted museum sort. It's social history, old engineering skills and a way of passing all this on before it fades from the collective memory. It's also good for wellbeing and extending many people's lives in retirement as they regain a sense of purpose, comradeship, enjoyment and fulfilment. Apart from fairly recent concerns regarding the burning of coal, it's one of those rare activities in life that has no downside as far as I can see.
I'm glad you raised the matter of architecture and design because that's very likely to feature as this 'antidote to a scary world' series evolves. I completely agree with you regarding the Moscow underground by the way.