Cronin House
245 Church Street
London
N9 9HW
Telephone: 020 8803 0255
Membership enquiries: membership@poauk.org.uk
General enquiries:
general@poauk.org.uk
For almost 50 years, our members have worked tirelessly with women in custody, showing – among many other things – compassion, support and empathy, as many of these women have had traumatic back stories. The way they were supported shows the level of commitment from our members, and the wider staff group.
There have been some tragic losses of lives within those in our care which we should never forget and each of these cases has had an impact on our members. That shows the professional relationships that were built up within the prison and the relationships that will continue into the new prison.
Following the Angiolini Commission on Women Offenders, the SPS embarked on a change of how women were to serve their sentences and the Women’s National Strategy was produced, with more focus on adversity and trauma and how to best support prisoners within the women’s estate. One of the changes was to close down HMYOI Cornton Vale and replace it with a modern prison and one that has better facilities to see through the SPS vision. Alongside this was the opening of two smaller facilities, the Bella Centre in Dundee and the Lilias Centre in Glasgow. All three of these facilities will fulfil the vision of the SPS with our members firmly focused on achieving these changes.
At the time of writing this article, Cornton Vale is currently being decommissioned and once this is complete, the new site will be commissioned. The commissioning of the building will be an important stage, not only for the SPS but also the POA(S) as we must ensure that while there is a new vision, this vision doesn’t compromise the health and safety of our members. Therefore, we will be fully involved in the RA, SSOW and SOPs developments to ensure the regime agreed is safe to deliver.
HMYOI Stirling, as mentioned, will focus more on adversity and trauma which obviously will have to be supported with proper investment in the staff group. While staff have obvious skills in these fields, we must ensure proper training and support is offered to our membership to carry out the new vision in which they are being asked to invest.
The proximity of the new prison to the old one will not mean staff won’t be feeling anxious about this move. There will be natural anxieties around the move to the new prison, as staff have worked in Cornton Vale for many years, through some difficult and challenging times but also happier times where they have built up strong relationships. So the impact this will have on some of our members should not be under-estimated and I want you all to know that support is there, both from the employer and the POA, so please use it if required.
As prison officers, change usually concerns us and most of us just don’t like change, but done properly this should be a positive change and a better working environment for staff to do their job. While there will be challenges along the way, the dedication that you show daily will make this a successful prison.
JOHN CAIRNEY
SNC CHAIR
Cronin House
245 Church Street
London
N9 9HW
Telephone: 020 8803 0255
Membership enquiries: membership@poauk.org.uk
General enquiries:
general@poauk.org.uk
Representing over 30,000 Prison, Correctional and Secure Psychiatric Workers, the POA is the largest UK Union in this sector, able to trace its roots back more than 100 years.