POA Circulars

BBC Radio 4's current affairs documentary series 'File on 4' is making a 40-minute programme to be broadcast on the 15^th March about mental illness in prisons and the problems transferring prisoners to hospitals in the community. 

Please find attached NEC minutes for 26^th January 2022 for your information.

Further to POA Circular 116/2021 which outlined the NEC initial view to the Prison White Paper as set out by Government on 7^th December 2021, the National Chairman and I have now sent in a response to the formal consultation, which ends on the 4^th February 2022 (Please find attached).

Please bring the contents of this circular to the attention of all POA members

Please find attached NEC minutes for 12^th January 2022 for your information.

The POA urge members to write to their local MP and ask them to support Grahame Morris MP’s Prisons (Violence) Bill, aka the “Safe Inside Law” which returns to Parliament on 25^th February 2022.

You will recall that we have fought and won Tribunal cases for members who were members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS) and who were required to transfer to the Alpha Pension Scheme that was introduced in 2015.

As members are aware the POA Health and Safety Whitley Committee have been campaigning for a menopause policy for members to be produced by HMPPS. HMPPS have now realised they need a policy and work has started on producing it.

As you are aware POA Circular 114/2021 requested expressions of interest to attend the above training. Unfortunately, due to the current Omicron variant and related problems, it has been decided to postpone this training.

Please find attached NEC minutes for 15^th December and Special NEC minutes for the 21^st December 2021 for your information.