Latest From Napo 125

Here we have the latest Newsletter sent to London Napo members and a very different style to those of the previous Chair, Pat Waterman:-

TO: NAPO MEMBERS

MTC & UNIONS CONTINUE TO BUILD TRUST AROUND 2020 VISION
November’s Joint Negotiating Committee meeting between the CRC owner and the unions was again positive and open – the unions being encouraged by MTC’s honest assessment of their challenges and also their willingness to draw from our local and professional knowledge and expertise. An example of this is how we are working closely with them around office closures – the unions recognising that some offices are not fit for purpose whilst passing on important local intelligence and discussing creatively options for alternatives. Members with particular with particular concerns around office moves are encouraged to share these with Napo. The unions were also invited to meet their design consultants planning office layouts where we will pass on lessons from other CRC’s who haven’t got this right.

MTC also updated us on reforms to delivery to support their emerging Vision 2020. Napo welcomed recognition that the cohort model had led to hugely variable caseloads and welcome moves to geographically based teams with consistent and manageable workloads. We specifically raised concerns about line management capacity if Band 5’s are expected to have full day-to-day line management responsibility for up to 15 staff – impossible to do well if that includes all appraisals and performance management with other professional aspects of the role. Napo will continue to press for more resources and numbers in the first frontline manager roles across probation.

E3 JOB EVALUATION OUTCOMES
After meeting staff involved and representing concerns to NPS senior management a clearer, fairer and more inclusive process for assessing the anomaly of AP Deputy Managers and the E3 model was negotiated and agreed. AP Deputy Mangers were obviously concerned that their roles had previously been job evaluated at band 5 but their role didn’t feature in the E3 template and so they were potentially at risk of being downgraded and prevented from being considered for the Band 5 roles in the new structure.

However, after the negotiations, a job matching process was agreed and the roles were matched to Band 5, confirming the integrity of the original job evaluations. This still leaves a concern around potentially accommodating more staff into AP manager roles than there are currently jobs and Napo will continue to monitor this and support members, including AP Managers, impacted.

This example highlights how important it is that Napo won the no-redundancy agreement and three year pay protection for staff impacted by E3 – without this, such situations would have been even more complex and threatening for members.

PAY UPDATE INCLUDING APPLICATION OF 2015 – 16 AWARD STILL NOT PAID
Since June Napo have been involved in regular discussions with NPS officials about potential pay reform. These talks are progressing positively but are reaching a point where potential structures will need to be modelled and costed. Members are encouraged to attend local meetings and look out for Napo briefings over the coming weeks for more details.

In the meantime, we anticipate all employers seeking to pay the contractual incremental step for all staff not at their pay band maxima in the coming weeks. Following a national meeting this week, we agree not to object to these payments being made but will monitor their application closely. We are aware that many who left the service or retired during the last award period have not yet been paid their contractual pro-rata entitlements, or had pension payments adjusted accordingly. It is of great concern to us that the NPS and SSCL have struggled to process payments properly or advise CRC’s on their obligations under the terms of the award.

ICT PROBLEMS
Napo are continuing to log and raise ICT problems, both locally and at national level. We are especially concerned about the impact for Assisted Technology users of problems, as well as the impact on all staff of periods when much of the system doesn’t work.

Napo’s view is that the whole current ICT structure for probation is inadequate and dangerous. These reservations are reflected in the recent critical HMIP inspectorates report. We are concerned that CRC’s are seeking to develop improved working models, but that these have to be integrated into ancient systems. These concerns are being raised nationally, including with Ministers.

PRISON REFORM WHITE PAPER
Napo has been scrutinising the Prison Reform White Paper published last week in the immediate wake of the on-going prison crisis. There is evident concern that the scale of the prison crisis will see a panicked reaction with additional resources being made available but then wasted on panicked, short term measures. The direction of travel was already for more probation staff to be working with offenders in custody, giving rise to challenging management and delivery issues that could (especially in an overstretched service with staff shortages already) have further complicated ramifications for all parts of probation. It is critical that probation has a strong, professional voice at all levels of the conversation and Napo welcomes any members’ input via info@napo.org.uk

NAPO AGM & MOVING FORWARD
London Branch would like to thank all members who made it to Cardiff for the AGM at the end of September. It was a successful event with many members leaving more optimistic about our future as a service and as a union. As ever there were some outstanding professional sessions and debates. There is still plenty of opportunity for members to get more involved in Napo in London – all volunteers are welcome and if you have something to give we’ll try to make sure we can find a way to make the best use of whatever time, skills and support you can offer. We’re also looking to maintain our reputation as the most social of Napo branches, starting with our forthcoming QUIZ night on 30th November. If you are interested in taking part please email. Alternatively, call the London Branch office XXXXXXXXXXX as from the 21st November.

PLEASE SHARE THIS NOTE WITH COLLEAGUES WHO MAY NOT BE MEMBERS OF NAPO.

Remember you can get cheaper subs by paying directly through Direct Debit and can also access our extensive new Napo members’ Benefits Package and save the cost of membership in full.

DEAN ROGERS (Assistant General Secretary) 
PATRICIA JOHNSON (NPS Co Chair)
DAVID RAHO (CRC Co-Chair) 
TERRY WILSON (NPS Vice Chair)

Memo to Bob Neill MP

Bob,

First off, can I say that next time you take up what sounds like a brilliant suggestion from one of your young and enthusiastic team, such as a foray into 'social media' on Facebook with an offer to 'Ask Bob', you have something meaningful to say. To put it bluntly, this isn't a good enough answer to the considered and detailed questions highlighted in Wednesday's blog post:-

Bob: "Hi Denice, we don’t hold this information and we are afraid the questions should be directed to MoJ or to the CRCs involved. Should the Committee decide to inquire into this subject in the future it will no doubt take evidence on the impact on staff of the new arrangements. Thank you."

I notice the author didn't give up though and got this further response from you:-

"Thank you for following up on this. The Committee is following developments in Transforming Rehabilitation very closely, having questioned MoJ’s Permanent Secretary on the issue and held an informal meeting with CRCs, Government officials and academics earlier this month. It has already received many suggestions that it pursue an inquiry into the subject; this will be given consideration as soon as possible, but cannot be addressed immediately as its work programme is already full with other urgent issues (including Prison reform and Implications of Brexit for the justice system)."

So Bob, you don't think the crisis in probation is that urgent? Well, let me tell you that the shit is shortly to hit the fan in relation to MTCnovo, the dodgy American outfit that was awarded the contract to run the largest probation service by far, that of London, right on your doorstep. 

News reaches me from last Friday's meeting of Napo London Branch that when the HMIP report is published:-  

"They will get an absolute kicking, 'be slaughtered, likely to be one of the worst reports to date' - seems they are awaiting CRC Improvement Action Plan before publication - but threats to withdraw contract seem in the air - as a consequence front line staff are 'copping it' in terms of intense performance management crack down with a sense of demoralisation (defiance from some) palpable...50% OASys reports outstanding etc due to CRC inept handling - the cohort model will be replaced by a patch based approach (seems that the model of practice adopted was for Thames Valley & was introduced as a panic measure). Seems that 'lots of senior faces have been purged' in advance of report."

"London RISE* - financial meltdown backlog of reports, each costing 3k and a sense of impending collapse...Community Payback - disaster area! 66 Case Managers - now 18 staff for whole of London - derisory training - apparently a decision to make Orders 'concurrent' when pre-existing Order in force, one example of 'corrupt practices' -  'downtrodden' was how the heroic rep described colleagues.."

Now Bob, in my humble submission, none of this is going to play well, coming as it does on top of the now very public knowledge of the crisis created in our prisons by Chris Grayling's disastrous policy decisions when Justice Minister. Of course he did a very similar job with TR and probation and I have to say your Committee has been extremely slow in recognising there's a very serious problem here too. Yes, you've given ministers and senior Civil Servants a grilling, but if I may say so, you've been extremely lax in failing to follow up on the soft soap and bollocks you've been told on a regular basis and routinely highlighted on this blog by astute commentators.

Can I suggest that under your watch the MoJ Contract Police have obviously been asleep at the wheel? Why didn't they give MTCnovo a good kicking before HMIP got in and discovered London was in such a mess? They're only up the road for goodness sake! An American company that knows nothing about probation with a former prison governor in charge was always likely to end in tears wasn't it?   

We all know that the dreadful Coalition government made sure that the TR probation contracts contained a poison pill making cancellation prohibitively expensive, but CRC contractors such as MTCnovo are clearly not delivering, so surely the contracts need to be taken away on the grounds of non-compliance? 

It's got to make sense because an effective probation service must form part of any plan for prison reform and the present system is completely broken. May I therefore be so bold as to suggest you heed the advice you have already been given, as indeed you freely admit, namely:- 

"It has already received many suggestions that it pursue an inquiry into the subject; this will be given consideration as soon as possible."

so jolly well get on with it, please, Bob!  


*RISE was formed as a result of the Government’s Transforming Rehabilitation programme. We deliver specialist offender rehabilitation services in London as part of our contract with MTCnovo, which is a consortium of third, public and private sector companies that provide rehabilitation and offender management services across London and Thames Valley. We have also won contracts with a number of London Boroughs delivering programmes tailored to complex local needs.

Pick of the Week 20

What a disaster of an interview. It was PR gold handed on a plate which the GS managed to spill on the floor. Body language, tone & presentation was of someone not remotely interested, almost bored; the interviewer was more animated and appeared disappointed his enthusiasm wasn't reciprocated. It wasn't so long ago that Napo agreed NOT to use the term 'offender' but in reference to Sodexo's open plan policy the interviewer quotes the term "service users" and asks if that means Napo members: "No, no. Offenders" smirks Lawrence. 

He didn't give any impression of a leader of a union whose members are being shafted inside out, upside down & back to front; whose members have been fucked over day after day for the last ten years. Disgraceful, cringemaking, amateurish twaddle. £70K a year... Really??

*****
I have to say I gave up watching the video half way through in disgust. The interviewer was handing Ian prime questions that should have received a blistering response however he managed to sidestep many of them and waffle through the rest. Didn't sound like a Trade Unionist to me - disgruntled privateer more like. What a wasted opportunity.

*****
So that's one giant leap for the General Secretary's ego. So many opportunities handed to him on a plate about financial concerns, no mention of staff being robbed of EVR, pensions, whole life careers carelessly thrown away to save a shilling and then him appearing to welcome the privateers changes, staff pay, terms and conditions being eroded as long as they receive appropriate training! 

No mention of PO status being lost whilst the duties are passed to PSO grade, with no recognition or remuneration - as long as they are trained? The man needs to go, he is a fool and can't protect any of us with that attitude. He hasn't fought or successfully defended one action against TR - he admitted as much in the interview. His reputation is weak, vain and compliant and the privateers love him. He only talks a good job. Ambition way above ability and eager to preen like a peacock and drink like a fish. In the same mould as others who have been GS of NAPO and have gone down in history achieving nothing.

*****
Publicity for our cause is hard come by. Brexit, Trumpet being news headlines that have swamped the media headlines for what seems like forever. However, if we do not keep the beacons alight we will fail. Change is, I sense, is in the air. Let's us keep the flames burning. People are starting to cast their gaze in our direction.

*****
They may well look but the light house of Ian Lawrence will not shine on anything after that performance more like a defective bulb. From what I saw at least. We need a speaker who is a challenging force not a wannabe look a like intellect he certainly is not that. Not even a huff and a puff.

*****
Mr Lawrence is a poor advocate for the Probation Service and values. I agree, he missed a number of opportunities to be bold and forthright and that is to say nothing of his seemingly bored presentation.

*****
As someone who lived through the Voluntary Severance travesty by Sodexo last year can I offer some thoughts to those SW CRC staff caught in the should I/shouldn't I trap?

1. Staff didn't have any positive union backing in the form you have, no talks & certainly no ACAS. It does sound like lessons have been learned by the unions & local activism is very impressive.
2. Staff were mercilessly bullied by Sodexo via local collaborators, the fear & distress for staff being evident as timescales shortened, at which point levels of anger & resentment were very high.
3. The VS agreement was exceptionally restrictive, a straight jacket & gag to keep people under control & silent. Even backdated pay rises were lost.
4. The VS agreement was an insult, but some felt it was better than being managed out the back door under Sodexo disciplinary procedures - an implied threat from some of Sodexo's cutest operators.
5. The SW CRC staff have strong union support & the matter has reached ACAS, with the Lurkers clearly not playing ball. The political climate is very different & Hindson has been levered out the door.

In the Sodexo situation I would have taken VS & cleared off. It was toxic, it was bitter & extremely damaging to peoples' health & well-being. However in your position, on balance I would stay & fight for the full EVR.

*****

Thank you for sharing, I hope CRC staff everywhere reflect on this and gain some strength in numbers, as it is an incredibly stressful situation. I for one, would never criticise or judge people for the decisions they make. We all have our own issues, and a disenfranchised workforce is unlikely to make progress where the unions have failed. I hope ACAS bring some pressure to bear on Aurelius/WL.

*****

Something often missed about the Sodexo scenario was that most of those taking VS were not union members, either because they had never been so or had left whichever union they were in due to their union's inaction & silence. The current SW CRCs have the benefit of very active & tenacious union work - clearly something being driven locally by vigorous, informed & passionate reps.

*****
Contrary to the sobbing, heartbroken Hindson who has been elbowed out it is perhaps worth remembering that in Sodexo's CLCRC both Chief Execs cleared out at the earliest opportunity - Big Bad Kev on the day before ownership transferred across (having done all the preliminary dirty work he presumably knew how much dirtier it was going to get?) and Bigger Badder Penny who saw off busloads of staff through the shitty VS debacle but didn't last much longer; both served about 18 months before baling with generous financial packages. Wonder if their treachery ever keeps them awake?

By contrast we have members of the POA today saying they would rather continue to protest and face jail terms than collude with or perpetuate dangerous conditions for prisoners & staff in the prisons estate. That is principled commitment.

*****
Well the health and safety aspect is a major part of the SW dispute. Our branch was well informed of the deliberate tactic of Working Links Hinson and all not to release the operational plan service design to the national unions or to share any local service arrangements properly. All played out now and the unions have not penetrated the wall of silence and game playing but they will in time I am told.

*****
Be in no doubt, Dino is beating them up, our dispute and move to ACAS would not have happened without his leadership. Read his branch reports on this blog. No other CRC has had the challenges Working Links have had. Grateful thanks to Dino and his reps I'm still employed for now.

*****
Aaaaaarrgggghhhh!!!! For a supposedly key figure in our criminal justice system Napo's GS displays a dire lack of understanding and poor judgement when he writes: "Their [Prison Officers] willingness to ‘walk off the job’ when it becomes absolutely intolerable (despite the ban on industrial action) is both brave and commendable, although the injunction awarding judges obviously don’t agree."

The 'injunction awarding judges' have no role in agreeing or disagreeing with the actions of prison staff; the judges' must simply consider & implement existing law. That is a keystone of our criminal justice system.

He compounds his crass comment when he haughtily observes: "Naturally the action has sparked the usual wave of hysterical analysis by the likes of the Daily Mail and Express whose front pages are full of rump stake [sic] and video games exposes..." Or criticising the judges who ruled on the law regarding a parliamentary vote to activate leaving Europe? Oops!

*****
Those members of Napo who feel the case for finding another General Secretary is getting stronger by the day, citing the recent woeful appearance on Russia Today, will have to make sure there is at least one other alternative candidate next year when he finds himself up for re-election. Be warned, there will be forces within the union, especially at the top, who will try and ensure that there is no viable alternative candidate and hence no election.

*****
So where is the bar currently set? Lacklustre, uninformed narcissist? Naive, over-ambitious wannabe? What's been achieved by the last two GS's? Pay freeze for years; loss of annual leave; loss of essential car user allowance; loss of definition between PO & PSO roles; loss of a national service; loss of £130k as a leaving present to disgraced GS; agreement to sifting; no resistance to Sodexo; no public image or media presence, except for cringeworthy bits & bats; loss of hundreds of members; self-aggrandising blogs.

*****
He is flanked by doe eyed women who think they are there to serve him. So they do. The AGM gave me the biggest insight over the way they all buckled up to try and deliver his desires and one was to get out of national bargaining.

*****
Is Dino or anyone else involved able to clarify what is meant by "there is just not enough reassurance for the protections on your terms that should be required by all the representatives involved.... there may be some talks attended for on Wednesday next week that will potentially look to address the concerns the unions have on the operational plans for the delivery of services."

In the early morning gloom it sounds like the battle for EVR has been lost (or sacrificed?) and the focus is elsewhere. I hope I am mis-reading the meaning.

*****
I know Dino and others are working very hard to keep the focus where it should be. It will be very convenient for WL to be distracted into minutiae and thereby sidestep the EVR/contractual questions that have been raised.

*****
"The upscaling and downgrading of risk cases to PSO" This is happening in the NPS too and PSO's are being actively recruited to replaced PO's. What is Napo doing about this?

*****
For the record I also have this concern. I am a Napo member. I have told my rep. The response is that Napo are well aware of PSO's set to take NPS work and jobs from PO's and are doing nothing about it as they have limited bargaining power with the MoJ and civil service. In fact Napo was involved in the E3 consultation that paved the way and already failed to challenge this point. It is rather shocking the same concern is being raised and challenged for the CRC but apparently ok and ignored for the NPS.

*****
E3 definitely agreed and supported by K Lomas vice chair NAPO, her advice is collusive with NPS at the very least, ambition above ability here. This reflects the GS and 2 anonymous, lazy chairs. There has got to be something better for our Union when election of the GS comes soon. Campaign to find someone worthy of £70 k salary Jim et al.

*****

In response, I would be very worried about Katie Lomas in case she fancies herself as the Next Napo Chair. She doesn't want National Collective Bargaining and so is essentially backing the job cuts and devastation to the CRC's, let alone the equivalent concerns in NPS. I agree - we need to get a campaign going for the next Chair and also suitable candidate for GS too.

*****

I am an employee of DDCCRC and a Napo member. From what I can see it is the local reps who have pushed for the matter to be addressed by Napo and in particular the SSW Branch. Who is the branch Chair - DINO. Reading through Branch Reports it states that NOMS Contract people were not available for the Joint Secs meeting. I can't see that they have yet contributed their view. It seems to me that Napo should be providing some legal advice in this matter to reps and members alike. I would urge Napo and Unison members to go to the Branch Meetings and request their Branches to take up local matters otherwise nothing will happen.

*****
Agreed we need new arm chairs but not like the current spring less and shabby pair. Any from the current field will not be a nice new sofa. A useless performance because of complicit complacency over the failure to support properly the VLOs and more lately the E3 sell off. No protections for us and there will be none for them when the time comes.

*****
Dino's message could be seen to imply that the concrete issues of terms & conditions of employment, EVR & a nationally agreed position are being sidelined to allow for the vagaries & distractions of re-examining "risk to the public" vis-a-vis "operational plans for delivery of service".

1. Is 'risk' really an issue for ACAS in respect of EVR?
2. Time is not on the side of those wanting a resolution to EVR.
3. Where is the NOMS contract manager?
4. What about the SoS's "golden share"?

*****
Yes, risk is most definitely an issue! These cuts are not justified and will increase the risks to staff, offenders and public alike. Staff will be at risk of burnout/ stress etc. Offenders will be at increased risk of offending and all the consequences that go with that (including ending up in custody = increased risk of death). Public will be at increased risk of harm through being inadequately protected by experienced staff who understand risk management. This is every ones responsibility so why should ACAS not see it as an issue?

*****
Fair enough, but... the bids were invited, designed around & awarded on the basis of significant reductions in staffing costs, hence the Modernisation Fund sweetener to cover the cost of paying off staff. I can't see ACAS having any impact upon that aspect of the CRC operational design because they will say that's what MoJ asked them to do. However, I don't think the greedy globals should be allowed to misappropriate the monies allocated for EVR.

No, I do NOT agree with the sale of probation, the staff shrinkage or the ideology and I do NOT believe the business model was ever going to work (beyond adding to offshore corporate bank balances), but... let the fuckers fail. Get the EVR for the staff, don't give them the oxygen of co-operation and let the fuckers publicly & spectacularly fall from grace.

Just watching the BET HipHop awards on MurdochVision & heard this from an award wining crew: "Look after each other, don't let them divide & rule."

*****
Hey, Probation was always wanting to be the boy with his finger plugging the hole in the dam. How about making those who commissioned or constructed the dam take some responsibility? 'Cos when you get tired and your finger goes limp, everyone will blame you for the subsequent disaster. This is how SFOs work, & this is how Probation got shafted.

Maybe its time to step away from the dam. Let the cracks show, let the blame for cutting corners, shoddy workmanship & utter incompetence rest where it belongs.

CRC Dispute Latest 13

18th November 2016

Branch request for information - Urgent

Dear Members,

The ACAS talks continue much to my own feelings that there is absolutely nothing in it for our members at this time. That said we are part of the wider group and although I have not agreed to continued ACAS activity for our branch is because there is just not enough reassurance for the protections on your terms that should be required by all the representatives involved.

That obvious question aside and we have continued to press for some required indicators there may be some talks attended for on Wednesday next week that will potentially look to address the concerns the unions have on the operational plans for the delivery of services.

It is matter of record that the Joint Unions are concerned that the Innovation Wessex are not an independent assessment certification group that could legitimately offer Aurelius and Working Links a genuine endorsement to provide services under the design they have already signalled fit for purpose.

The Trade unions are on record that we do not believe the model is in fact fit for purpose and the growing and yet denied significant increases in SFOs is enough reason alone, you would want to encourage the employers to halt their break neck speed plans. To stop look and work more in a collaborative way to manage the changes over a staged and trialled period.

Not a chance of that under their own decisions yet through ACAS there has been some acceptance they need to have a review of the concerns for the safety of the Public that only the unions are obviously exposing at the moment.

Before we enter into the current mire any further and facing their continued delay tactics this employer seems well adept it would help the negotiators of the SSW branch to hear of all of your current crisis situations.

The way you are being treated
The fears and anxieties over the case working workloads and staffing numbers
First hand accounts of sickness and the gaps in both team and team location travelling and cover arrangements
The wider risks that you genuinely perceive in the way the work is devolved to staff
The IT and the general matters that are now all but impossible to manage effectively as we used to
The upscaling and downgrading of risk cases to PSO
Duty cover arrangements
Case oversight risk management
SFO Numbers especially and locations
Changes to your role current and planned
How you see the operational changes and whether anything positive can be drawn to our attention

We in Napo branch appreciate this is short notice but you will understand that the ACAS talks are all but live and events are moving daily if not weekly. I am not certain that we will get to the outcomes that we require before talks but we would like as much support as is possible please to make the case based on the facts from members not just the claims made by management. Please circulate this to Non members who may want to contribute and of course please join NAPO if you are not a member. Also examples from all the linked union areas.

Please e mail me direct your views or Denice James on the email or directly to Napo HQ For Ian Lawrence General Secretary and dinop@blueyonder.co.uk Or your regional NAPO representative for Wales and BGSW.

Thank You

Dino Peros Napo Branch Chair SSW

Latest From Napo 124

Edited highlights from the General Secretary's latest blog post:-

Cafcass members help to engineer victory in the Lords

One of the last actions from our enlivening AGM in Wales was the debate around the emergency motion that alerted conference to the fact that Clause 29 of the Government’s Children and Social Work Bill, published the week before in committee, would give powers to exempt local Councils from their current legal duties affecting all social care services for children.

This possibility would have exposed a range of areas, including Child Protection, family support, the ‘leaving care’ services and services for disabled children to the vagaries of a “postcode lottery” for the provision of these critical protections.

The Family Court Section’s EM instructed Napo to join forces with the ‘Together for Children’ campaign to oppose Clause 29. On returning from Wales Jay Barlow (National Vice-Chair for the Family Court Section) found she had already been contacted by the co-ordinator of the campaign, Carolyne Willow, who had heard about the emergency motion. As you would expect Napo joined ‘Together for Children’ on the same day.

Action

Jay tells us that: ‘More than 105,000 concerned people signed the petition set up by Carolyne on the 38 Degrees website. On 8th November this petition was heard by the House of Lords and the ‘leave out’ clause 29 amendment was passed by 245 votes to 213, a rare Government defeat by 32 votes. This is a fabulous example of what can be achieved when we pull together with other campaigners and it’s a profoundly important outcome for the children that our members work so hard to protect in both Cafcass and Probation.’

As is often the way, it’s an important result but not a full victory yet, and hopefully we won’t see Clause 29 back again at the third reading scheduled for November 23rd. meanwhile three big cheers for the Family Court Section please?

Drugs, Drones, Phones, Mannequins and Diamond Cutters too

As you would expect we sent over a message of solidarity to protesting Prison Officers this week who understandably decided that enough was enough in terms of getting someone to take their issues seriously.

Their willingness to ‘walk off the job’ when it becomes absolutely intolerable (despite the ban on industrial action) is both brave and commendable, although the injunction awarding judges obviously don’t agree. Anyway, it certainly meant that they got some valuable airtime as floundering Ministers struggled to get the governments supposed solutions across.

Naturally the action has sparked the usual wave of hysterical analysis by the likes of the Daily Mail and Express whose front pages are full of rump stake and video games exposes’.

In the real world these are the exceptions rather than the norm of course, and its drug fuelled unrest and the perpetual threat of and actual violence that are the issues regularly being faced by prison staff and service users within a system that has been left to crumble to absolute breaking point by successive governments. The picture has been embellished by some recent escapes under bizarre circumstances including, as was first reported, the clever use of mannequins placed in the absentees beds. This led to a number of colleagues with experience of the HMP body search regime to seriously question how that might actually be physically possible? Now we know that part of the case was pure fabrication (sorry), there is a more pertinent issue as to how diamond cutters became part of the plan?

Of course the absence of a structured approach to the rehabilitation question has fuelled the debate and it’s good to see any number of politicians belatedly hoisting their petards to that mast.

In terms of the obvious solutions of having less prisoners in prisons and more work with people best qualified to stop them returning there, I wonder if Chris Grayling ever stops to ponder how his flagship ‘through the gate’ policy has so quickly become a woeful cropper. His much vaunted boast that it was: ‘not good enough that short term offenders received £46 and no support.’ Looks a bit vacuous does it not? Although perhaps that’s a bit unfair, as these days it’s typically £46 (depending on length of sentence) and a leaflet.

The spiral of despair and recidivism shows no sign of abating any time soon.

David Lammy issues his emerging findings

I have previously reported that Napo has met with the review team looking into racial bias in the criminal justice system, and if Liz Truss and Sam Gyimah didn’t have enough on their plate then David Lammy’s interim report would have done nothing at all to cheer them up. https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/lammy-review

The conclusions so far back up our and many others assertions that people of BAME origin are far more likely to receive harsher and or disproportionate treatment from the criminal justice institutions.

David will now be seeking to drill deeper into the reason for this and we are at the stage where our members can be of assistance in terms of feeding in their personal views or experiences as to why this is happening.

Send me any comments to info@napo.org.uk marked Lammy Review please ideally by the end of this month.

Meanwhile, here are some statistics which pretty much speak for themselves

Research and analysis: Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic disproportionality in the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales

Official Statistics: Associations between ethnic background and being sentenced to prison in the Crown Court in England and Wales in 2015

Slow News Day

It looks as if we're going to have to get used to the idea that probation is rapidly fading from the news agenda - if it was really ever on it - and the talk is all about prison. Look a bit harder though and social work keeps cropping up and we know that the government would dearly love to privatise this area of work, if only they could sneak things past the House of Lords. 

It's a slow news day for probation, despite Facebook confirming there was a complete national computer melt-down the other say at 2.25pm; that London CRC, the largest in the country by far, has withdrawn all union facility time and therefore has no Napo Branch Chair or Vice Chair; the Justice Committee Facebook discussion was a waste of time, and the Working Links CRC dispute rumbles on with rumours of an imminent mass staff exodus despite the best efforts of local union reps:-  

15 November 2016

CRC MEMBERS

Tomorrow is the deadline for those of you who may have applied for VS. Napo have stated this is entirely a matter for individuals. We are unable to advise you on voluntary matters. These fall way short of the arrangement and protections that your Trade Unions continue to argue, and when able explore legal action to ensure your rights are protected. either individually or collectively.

I would remind you however that the Trade Unions are continuing to work to protect the Redundancy Terms and Conditions. There are a lot of new jobs, however for new jobs to exist your old job should either be terminated by reason of redundancy or through a variation of contract that has been agreed to; however none of these have been agreed with the Trade Unions. None of the reduced pay rates have been through Job Evaluation, and therefore have no place to be put to staff in this way.

Ironically there is no talk of Senior Management reductions on pay with their fewer duties and responsibilities across the CJ sphere than they used to carry out when we were one service. In the meantime we will keep you posted and updated on ACAS.

Denice James
JNCC Rep

--oo00oo--

So, back to social work as there are many similarities with probation. I notice the following was posted on Facebook by David Raho from a recent Guardian Social Care Network piece:-   

Has hotdesking had its day for social workers?

When social workers discuss the challenges they face in their jobs, they might mention increasing caseloads, colossal amounts of paperwork, or how undervalued they feel, but one issue is sure to make many see red: hotdesking.

Hotdesking involves multiple workers using a single workstation during different time periods. Many professionals feel, however, that social work and hotdesking do not go hand in hand, and councils are reportedly beginning to move away from it. With the Hackney model’s pod system seemingly being more widely adopted, has hotdesking had its day?

Slough children’s services trust, a not-for-profit independent company that took over children’s services from Slough borough council, soon realised that hotdesking was a contentious issue among many of its new staff.

Eric de Mello, head of operations at the trust, says it had to act. “We haven’t completely moved away from hotdesking,” he says. “We’re just in our first year of operation after taking over services from the council, but we have heard what social workers have to say. We have been allocated nine [desk] spaces for every 13 people and our social workers were struggling. Newly qualified social workers were telling us that they found it quite difficult not knowing where to go for advice.”

Initially the trust made sure newly qualified social workers were in line of sight of their managers, but then decided to move to a hub system based on the Hackney model and similar set-ups around the country. Space restrictions mean it is still not possible for everyone to have their own desk all the time, de Mello says, but the trust has been able to make better use of space and ensure teams are able to stick together as much as they can.

Prof Eileen Munro has been outspoken about the harm hotdesking is doing to social work and hopes more councils will follow suit. Munro, whose landmark review of child protection practices was published five years ago, has argued that hotdesking leaves social workers feeling isolated, hindering their work.

She understands that saving money is a top priority but practitioners’ needs differ from those of the office workers authorities also employ. “Councils need to think about how the office is organised,” she says. “Is it organised so that social workers can have sensitive conversations without disturbing others and without being overheard? Are there periods when most people in a team are in and can easily meet?”

She adds: “It’s not just about how social workers should have their own desk. It’s about the office being somewhere people like to go and where they can find colleagues who are supportive. It’s about the role social workers play being valued.”

These conclusions are echoed in research by Laura Biggart, a senior academic at the University of East Anglia, who led a research project into emotional intelligence and burnout in child and family social work. As part of the study, Biggart and her colleagues spoke to social workers and managers about work environments and found the topic of hotdesking came up time and again.

Aside from the practical issues it caused, leading some to resort to working from their cars, many social workers discussed the emotional impact of hotdesking. “Hotdesking creates unpredictability and uncertainty, so inevitably it adds to the anxiety social workers feel,” Biggart says. “It also lowers morale because they see it as not being worthwhile enough to have a desk. They see managers who make these decisions keeping their desks whereas social workers lose theirs.”

She explains why it is such a big issue for social workers in particular: “If you got shouted at in the street and insulted, most people would want to go home because it’s a safe space, and people will be there to show sympathy and support. Your workspace is a bit like that and social workers are being yelled at or dealing with very upsetting things every day. They need somewhere safe to return to and hotdesking doesn’t help with that.”

For one social worker, however, hotdesking isn’t all bad. Sophie Olivia, who works in child protection at Cheshire East council, which has moved away from the system, says despite the difficulties there were upsides to hotdesking. “Positively, it enabled colleagues to get to know everybody on the team and we felt [like] a united service,” she says.

Around three years ago, Cheshire East also adopted the Hackney model’s pod system. Olivia’s team of approximately 50 staff is now split into five pods, each with approximately seven social workers of differing grades, from newly qualified workers to senior practitioners, overseen by a team manager.

Olivia is in favour of the pod system and believes it is a more efficient way of doing social work. “I think management oversight is better and, inevitably, by working in small teams other social workers become aware of the cases that social workers are holding on their pod,” she says. “This means that when a social worker is having to prioritise another case or there is staff sickness, for example, other social workers already have a good understanding of the case and can then offer support to the family. This prevents crises for families and also promotes the worker-client relationship.”

For de Mello, acting on the concerns of the social workers in his trust was a no-brainer. “We had to listen to what they had to say because the trust takes the view that our most precious and important resource is our staff.”

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Hot desking not working for social work. How about probation?

When I first joined probation I shared a small office with one other person and had a huge desk, filing cabinet and lockable drawers. When I qualified I had my own little office with a door I could leave open when I didn't mind a chat and close when interviewing or when I needed to concentrate. The walls were thick enough to muffle sound but not so thick that you could hear if voices were raised. I got more done than at any other time and it was the happiest workplace I've ever worked in. 

I first experienced open plan in the mid -1990s and it felt like a backward step. Noisy, irritating, no privacy and nowhere to have a cup of tea in peace. I moved service and got an individual office back all too briefly until that office closed and we had to move to cramped shared rooms in a former satellite factory. What had been a well functioning probation office slowly fragmented and team spirit died. It was awful for everyone and a big cause of people leaving - ironically many went to work for social services who at that time gave you your own office. Sometimes we worked in interview rooms if they were free just to get a bit of quiet time and I know I often sat in my car at lunchtime to chill out. Sometimes clients even knocked on the car window if they were early.

In retrospect giving up individual offices was actually a very bad idea in my opinion and most of those who have known both will tell you that open plan has never really been a good arrangement for probation. When your office doubled as an interview room with a whiteboard etc and you had all your materials nearby it was extremely convenient and good work was done.

David Raho

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Got any probation news? Contact me via the email address on the profile page. Thanks.

MoJ News

Secretary of State and Permanent Secretary Atrium event highlights transcript
Monday 7 November & Tuesday 8 November 2016

EMILY TOFIELD
I’m Emily Tofield, I’m the new Director of Communications and Information here. I started in September, and what a time to start. What an incredibly interesting time to join the Ministry of Justice.

SECRETARY OF STATE
We have an awful lot going on, and I think the way that the department has been in the news media demonstrates the vital importance of what we do to the overall debate in this country. I think it is a very exciting time to be Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, and I think it’s a very exciting time for this department.

Last week we unveiled the biggest prison reforms for a generation. We also secured additional money from the Treasury, to be able to increase the number of staff in our prisons, and I think it’s absolutely vital. We have a real issue at the moment with prison violence unfortunately. What I want to see is safe prisons where we can actually turn offenders lives around and we can reduce the £15bn bill of reoffending, by getting offenders into jobs, getting them the English and maths that often they don’t have when they enter our prison system, but also getting them off drugs, dealing with mental health problems. I want to use that approach more widely in areas like youth justice, women’s justice and probation reform.

I think our independent impartial judiciary is one of the great features of this nation, it’s the cornerstone of the rule of law, and it’s vitally important to our constitution and a free society. I am absolutely determined to defend that, I’m doing that across government and I’m doing that in public. What we also need to make sure is that our judiciary reflect the society we live in, and reflect all of the talents in the society. Without them, without a free press which is also important, and without proper democracy, we would not be a free society.

The other thing I wanted to mention is court reform, where we have made major progress in modernising our courts. One thing I am very proud of is that we are going to make sure that vulnerable and intimidated witnesses no longer have to be cross-examined in open court, we will be able to do that beforehand. We have a huge amount to do in this department. Every day I come into work and it’s exciting, but it also feels like quite a big task. What I know working with you over the past four months is that you are there working with me, as is the Permanent Secretary, Richard, to make this happen.

PERMANENT SECRETARY
Secretary of State you’ve set a cracking pace for us, a very clear political vision. It’s been an absolute pleasure, a challenging pleasure to respond, and it’s going to be fantastic to see through some of these reforms that we’ve been announcing. I’m really aware of the full range of work that you’re all doing to push the department forward, and our agenda. Thank you very much. We came into this spending period with a big spending challenge, a 50% spending challenge as a department, and that is one of the reasons why we set about transforming the department.

We are trying to produce a better department, better connected amongst its different parts, clearer purpose, certainly cheaper, but more effective and a greater place to work. Maybe the first most visible chapter of it was the VEDS scheme. We saw 600 of our colleagues leaving the department over the last few months, and they were 600 valued, experienced and talented colleagues, and there are several things I think we need to do in order to move forward with a smaller workforce. We have to become smarter, better, better techniques, better capability. 60% of the ideas that you put forward when we asked for your ideas, have now been incorporated into MoJ Transformation.

We are a clear department with a very clear focus. As the Secretary of State said we have four key priorities, they are: prisons reform, courts reform, transforming the department, and creating a human rights settlement, which may happen this year or may happen in a year or so time who knows.

The next chapter in MoJ Transformation, the next period, will be what we’ve called functional leadership. It’s about building functions that are more resilient, offer a greater career path for professionals in them, rather than creating simply big monolithic functions at the centre.

It’s also about creating a department that feels more joined up and more connected. A single department. We value the front-line, we value our agencies, but sometimes I think we’ve missed the opportunity to think of ourselves as being a single department, a justice family that has a single overarching mission. I feel that this department is on the threshold of becoming the best department in Whitehall. I am incredibly proud to be your Permanent Secretary, we have a cracking agenda set by the Secretary of State and I look forward to seeing it through.

QUESTION
If you want to get more diversity into the judiciary does it help that one of the judges involved in the Article 50 case was talked about as being gay?

SECRETARY OF STATE
I don’t like everything that is written in the press, and I do not like homophobic comments in the press, but I think it would be wrong for a government minister to start saying this headline is acceptable or this headline is unacceptable. What I am absolutely clear though, is that we must defend the independence of the judiciary, which is why I stepped in today and said what I did about Lord Thomas because I think judges swear an oath that should be respected.

QUESTION
I’d like to know what the Secretary of State wishes to do in the very short-term to tackle the increasing levels of serious violence in prisons against prison officers.

SECRETARY OF STATE
What we have done is we’ve identified ten of the most challenging prisons, where we’re bringing in the staff as early as possible, because I do recognise it is very difficult for those on the front-line, whilst we are building up those numbers.

PERMANENT SECRETARY
We are promoting work across a whole range of areas, data and insight into why these things happen, why violence happens, what are the predictive causes is a really useful tool and I don’t think we do enough of that. We need a national violence reduction strategy of course, but I would expect every governor in every prison to have a local violence reduction strategy as well, using local initiative, and local intelligence. We are absolutely on it. We will not relax until those numbers come back down to an acceptable level.

QUESTION
How easy once they have this education, how easy will it be for them to get a job, having a criminal background?

SECRETARY OF STATE
What I want to see is more employers coming forward, prepared to take on ex-offenders. We are having some success with companies like Land Securities who’ve got a lot of vacancies because we are doing a lot of construction. Actually taking on offenders and employing them and training them up while they are still in prison. What the White Paper reforms will do is they’ll enable prison governors to have much more say over what happens in their prison so they can bring employers in from the outside.

PERMANENT SECRETARY
I’m pleased to say that we, the department, the Ministry of Justice is employing our first offenders in our warehousing facilities. I think it is exactly as the Secretary of State says, it is a cultural change.

QUESTION
What role do you see digital, data and technology playing in helping us to deliver those reforms?

SECRETARY OF STATE
I think it’s incredibly important. First of all what data and digital can do is it can make sure our prison officers, who are incredibly brave and hardworking individuals, it can help them spend more of their time in high value activities reforming offenders. I’ve been in prisons with good digital systems and it makes a massive difference.

I also think that using data much better can help us deal with issues like violence. So it can help us analyse problems and get solutions much better too. So far we’ve had lots of evidence based on looking at individual programmes, but what I think we need to get better at is looking at all the data we collect about offenders and about the criminal justice system, to analyse the big data and say, well this is something that works, this is something that doesn’t work, if we tweak it in this way this is the impact it’s going to have.

PERMANENT SECRETARY
Letting that data flow through the system better because lots of things that go wrong are because an arresting officer doesn’t know about an offenders antecedents, or the prison service doesn’t know about a risk assessment that happened in the police service. So letting data flow through the system better.

EMILY TOFIELD
This is one of the first of a series of these events that will be happening, and we will be holding more of these soon. We are looking for your feedback, there will be a form sent around soon so please do fill it in and that will help us to shape these events for the future. Thank you again.

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Meanwhile, here's the Daily Telegraph reporting on what the previous minister Michael Gove thinks:-

Prison works? Gove calls for inmates to be released less than half way into sentences

Criminals should not be sent to prison unless there is no alternative and many of those already inside could be released after only a fraction of their sentence, Michael Gove the former Justice Secretary, has insisted. Abandoning the traditional Tory line that “prison works”, Mr Gove insisted both that there are too many people being sent to jail and that they are being kept there for too long.

In his first major intervention on policy since being sacked by Theresa May in the wake of the Conservative leadership contest, Mr Gove said aspects of the justice system, from prisons to the state of the legal profession, were themselves “practically criminal”. He described prison as an “expensive, anti-social, inefficient” and “potentially brutalising” response which often made crime more likely rather than less.

His intervention came as he delivered the annual Longford Lecture, in memory of Lord Longford, the former cabinet minister and passionate campaigner for often unpopular causes, in Westminster.

He called for sweeping reforms of the prison system modelled on his own overhaul of education, with jails becoming similar to academies or free schools – even being taken over by charities or other specialist groups to raise standards. He suggested allowing prisoners to work in normal jobs by day, permitting governors to strike commercial deals with local firms to employ them and bring in top businessmen and women or successful school heads to run jails.

Among his most controversial recommendations are a call for inmates who succeed in courses or work hard to be released even earlier than is already possible.

“I’d like to see it made possible to release prisoners before the current half-way point in their sentence at which release on license normally occurs – if they’ve demonstrated by their conduct and commitment to working and learning that they are ready for re-integration into society,” he insisted.

“Of course there are some offenders, and some sentences, not suitable for such a scheme but the knowledge that offenders could earn early release though the right behaviour and attitudes would be a powerful tool in helping to inject hope into prisoners’ lives, improving behaviour and security in jails, and in making sure that when they are released offenders have the right attitudes to succeed in society.”

Many people in the criminal justice system are, he said, products of troubled childhoods and have mental health problems or serious addictions who would respond better to the “embrace” of therapy than incarceration.

“That is why the idea of problem-solving courts - where the presiding judge takes a personal interest in the fate and future of the offender and is prepared to spare an individual from custody if they accept a course of treatment, submit to certain conditions or commit to particular conduct - is so promising,” he added.

“It creates a culture - and a presumption - of remorse and rehabilitation without the need for expensive, and potentially brutalising, imprisonment.” He went on: “It is an inconvenient truth - which I swerved to an extent while in office - that we send too many people to prison. “And of those who deserve to be in custody, many, but certainly not all, are sent there for too long.”

In the case of those with mental health problems, he said it was “no answer to their illness” to send them to the “cacophonous, chaotic, violent and disordered environment” of many prisons.

“But as well as improving mental health provision, we also need to be much more imaginative in providing alternatives to custody for all offenders,” he said. “Prison is expensive, anti-social, inefficient and often de-humanising. But prison also has the potential to be redemptive and rehabilitative.”

Questions To Bob

There's still time to put questions to the Justice Committee, like these:-

Please can the Committee provide answers to the questions below, which are prompted in part by Mr Selous's written answer of 8 June 2015, viz- 

"As part of the arrangements for the transfer of services from probation trusts to Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRC’s), an enhanced Voluntary Redundancy Scheme was put in place, in line with the terms of the National Agreement on Staff Transfer and Protections agreed with the probation Trade Unions, and funded by monies from the Modernisation Fund to support a sustainable reduction in resource requirements."

1. How much public money from the government's 'Modernisation Fund' was given by MoJ to the winning CRC bidders to cover the costs of making staff redundant?

2. How & why did MoJ subsequently decide that money was effectively gifted to the CRCs and not reclaimed if it wasn't used to meet the terms of the enhanced voluntary redundancy (EVR) scheme, e.g. in Sept 2015 one CRC refused to honour the nationally agreed EVR scheme & paid large numbers of staff off using a voluntary severance scheme at what is believed to have been 40% of the EVR rate - presumably the CRC pocketed the other 60%?

3. How could MoJ &/or Noms justify generous pay-offs to senior managers (some in excess of £250,000) yet not intervene on a contract management basis when frontline staff were being denied their entitlement to EVR and the monies provided for this purpose were being kept by the CRCs?

4. Given that MoJ admit they made payments from the public purse "to support a sustainable reduction in resource requirements", is it fair to suggest that the privatisation of probation services specifically encouraged bids from providers which were designed to shed staff? Or, put another way, is it fair, legal or ethical that in order to expedite their privatisation programme the government was prepared to pay global contractors to make professionally qualified, experienced employees redundant?

Opportunity Knocks!

Facebook Q&A with Justice Committee Chair Bob Neill MP

This Wednesday 16th November, Chair Bob Neill MP will answer questions from the public in a live Q&A, and the Committee wants you to get involved.

From 10.30–11.30am, Bob will be responding on the House of Commons Facebook page as part of UK Parliament Week. He is eager to hear directly from those with an interest in the Committee’s work, and to take the opportunity to answer your questions about its inquiries, findings and approach.

To submit your questions email the Committee at justicecom@parliament.uk with the subject 'Question for Bob', or leave a comment in the Q&A with Justice Committee Chair Bob Neill MP event on the House of Commons Facebook page.

Details of the Committee’s work in this Parliament may be found on its webpages.

Any comments or questions submitted will be moderated according to Parliament's online discussion rules.

Hope to see you on Wednesday,

The Justice Committee Team

CRC Dispute Latest 12

Joint statement from Napo, Unison and GMB:-

For urgent distribution to all trade union members across the three Working Links owned Community Rehabilitation Companies

No to Job Cuts...yes to fair play for staff...probation trade unions standing up for you!

11th November 2016

DISPUTE LATEST - Unions expect to meet with Aurelius at ACAS

In the last joint unions report we indicated that following the interim determination by the National Negotiating Council Joint Secretaries, we had taken up the invitation to participate in urgent mediation through the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) to explore whether a resolution of the dispute between the Aurelius/ Working Links CRC's and the probation unions was possible.

Despite every effort by the trade union team to make progress during a number of meetings, and the excellent efforts of the senior ACAS conciliator who is assisting the parties, the talks have been hard going with little sign so far that the parent company is prepared to offer any concessions or recognise their obligations to staff. Many of the issues and the processes previously set in train by the CRC's, under instruction by their owner, have created many barriers to an agreement.

Recently, the unions offered a number of suggestions around the three principle areas of the dispute (payment of EVR, the size of the staff cuts that are intended to take place by 31st March next year, and our serious concerns about the Operational Model around quality and public safety. Unfortunately we have seen little indication that the employers side want to take the opportunity to find a way forward.

Senior Aurelius representative set to appear at next meeting

In what is a clear sign of our frustration at the lack of progress so far, the unions have insisted that we should have the opportunity to engage with a senior representative of Aurelius and we have been told that Working Links Director Stephen Moon (who we have been led to believe is on secondment to Working Links from Aurelius) has the full authority of Aurelius to intervene in the talks at ACAS. We can but hope that we at last meet someone from the employers side who has some influence.

Our considered view is that Monday most likely represents the last chance for the parties to make any kind of progress before they report back to the NNC Joint Secretaries as they were directed to.

The ACAS talks have at least established that Aurelius are the real owner of your CRC employers which is why we rejected an offer last week to receive financial data about Working Links which would have been conditional on a confidentiality agreement, as we believe this is information that the unions are entitled to in order to inform collective bargaining.

This is just one more example of how difficult it has been to secure co-operation from the employers side and pave the way for serious negotiation. Over the weekend we will be working on a detailed letter that we want to see form the basis of the agenda for Mondays talks at ACAS.

Voluntary Severance- a shoddy situation

As members are aware we have consistently said that in our view the voluntary severance (VS) scheme on which decisions are being notified to applicants is a substandard offer that falls well short of your entitlement and which we refuse to endorse especially since some staff have already received awards under the Enhanced Voluntary Redundancy Scheme (EVR).

Many members have been contacting their union reps seeking advice on whether or not to accept a VS offer and we are not authorised to give, what is essentially financial advice, on this issue.

Acceptance of early severance which is effectively a resignation remains a matter for volunteers and is entirely a personal choice. It is something that the employer has determined they want to offer you to avoid their obligations. Our general view is that staff should consider staying within your posts and wait to see what efforts the employers make to agree your entitlements under your CRC compulsory redundancy agreement.

Meanwhile we have called on Aurelius / Working Links to withdraw their notice to review these policies whilst we are in a dispute.

What should be happening?

We are maintaining that as CRC's have different existing compulsory redundancy agreements the employer should have opened discussions long ago and offered us engagement under the terms of these policies. They have chosen not to do so whilst at the same time issuing highly misleading information to the effect that the unions are standing in the way of constructive dialogue.

The many issues before us in this dispute are complicated but the Unions position is to maintain secure jobs, proper roles and current terms throughout the life of this contract.

Performance claims hide some unpalatable truths about the Operational Model

In a recent communique to staff, the soon to depart Director of Justice Services has claimed that Working Links performance against its obligations to the Ministry of Justice, are the second highest of all providers.

Its hardly surprising given our members experience of the underlying operational shambles around premises, allocation of resources, non-existent job descriptions, directives to not undertake breaches and the failure of delivery on Through the Gate (admittedly not exclusive to the three CRC's in their contract) that we have received some very cynical views about this distortion of the facts.

By Working Links own admission, there are fundamental problems around the contract they and other CRC owners signed and some serious questions being asked by NOMS about their (and other CRC owners) ability and sustainability to deliver what they said they would at the time of the share sale.

We have increasing concerns which are attracting significant media interest about the link between a suspect and unproven operational model that we believe is already placing the public at risk and the possible links to recent SFO incidents.

Stick with your trade union

Whatever happens at the ACAS talks your position will be stronger by members staying in your trade union and encouraging colleagues who are not members to join up.

More news will follow as soon as it becomes available.