Saturday 29 March 2014

A Manager Explains

I never quite know what to write nowadays as things are so dreadful and the TR omnishambles is moving at such a pace, but lets run with what's happening up at Durham Tees Valley as being illustrative. It's not pleasant or edifying and those of a nervous or sensitive disposition might wish to pass on by, but this is the grim reality:-

Durham Tees Valley this afternoon, managers rushing round trying to catch staff to tell them where they will be located, one selection method being names in a hat if volunteers could not be found.......yes honestly. Someone who has given loyal service to the public sector treated this way, but that doesn't matter does it because it had to be done, didn't it? After all the Senior Management Team were only obeying orders.

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This is horrendous! They can't be allowed to get away with that craziness..names out of a hat!!! Please give details to campaigns@napo.org.uk. Hope Branch are pursuing this with management and supporting each other. Grim times and important to fight back!

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This is very much a lie!!! The process took into account personal preferences as per their EOI, personal circumstances, grade and diversity issues. I can assure you that it was an equally painful process for those who had to choose where people were moving to, however, we are under direction of the Secretary of State and can do little about this.

Nevertheless, we are only human and mistakes can, and will have been made. We have a grievance policy which people can use if they feel there are any special circumstances which may warrant either a relocation or remaining in situ. It's very painful process but equally unavoidable. At the risk of sounding blunt, we must now put this behind us and get on with our job.

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No one in the probation service is coming out of this unaffected and it is turning colleague against colleague as we can see from above. The only choice really is to leave and regrettably some people are doing this. We have been dividing our building into NPS and CRC floors. People are struggling with the moving, changing caseloads and now we have the added task of data cleansing. Splitting up offender information into the "correct" directories. The above talks about putting it all behind us but those assigned to the CRCs have even yet more to come. Sad times for our service indeed.

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I am anon at 21:58 and involved in the office relocation process for DTV. I repeat and stand by what I said previously. Sometimes there is a 'JFDI' moment and this was ours. It's not ideal, somewhat unedifying and probably demoralising for all involved. But, there is a process for appeal through our grievance procedure. If you are unhappy then use it. Otherwise just get on with your job which you are paid to do.

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Anon 21:58 and 23:47 - the callousness in your posts here is appalling and enough for me to believe every word of anon 19:32. 

To characterise what is happening as 'not ideal' and 'unedifying' is an ugly and offensive minimisation of the turmoil this is causing people. There's no 'probably' about it, there are few things more demoralising than some officious type telling you you should be a good little automaton and JFDI. The processes you defend are corrupt, unfair, deceitful and poisonous and no poxy, tokenistic grievance or appeals process is going to make up for it. As for your JFDI, you know what you and the rest of Graylings minions can shove it.


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Amen to the above. I was going to write a similar post but you beat me to it! I can honestly say how genuinely shocked I am to see how callous at 23:47 can be. It is evident that this poster has little awareness on the impact of TR on most, particularly front line, probation staff and their only concern appears to be about the extra work they have had to do in regards to the staff split which is apparently 'unedifying'. As for getting on with my job, as I'm paid as a CRC PO I'd love to know what this is as despite me asking for a job description on more than one occasion I'm still none the wiser! But hey, at least I know what I can't do!

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Anon@23.47. Hang your head in shame. 'Get on with your job which you are paid to do'. I wish I could. I've been stripped of my job. This is not demoralising or unedifying, it's destruction. You should be thoroughly ashamed of being part of this process.

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You can see how staff there are treated by the above posts can't you? Written in anger by someone clearly in management to respond to someone clearly in distress, the shutters are up and no-one is listening are they?

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Unbelievable. If it wasn't for the work itself I would have been doing something else years ago. Unfortunately a number of times I have observed managers who equate bullying with 'leadership'. Well we know that bullies are essentially cowards and here we are with the consequences. Just get on and do the job you are paid to do? Appalling.

36 comments:

  1. I'm voting with my feet. Let the managers try to manage, when there is no one to manage. My office has already lost half, yes half, of its staff. The whole damned omnishambles is going to collapse and how.

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  2. Its all okay now, hmp has been saved, prisoners' "concerted indiscipline" resolved -

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-26795465

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  3. Of course this is sad to read and I for one will do nothing but wait for the new job description before I take on any role. Also the colleagues who in HR departments across the country have embraced and then these fiddled job allocations and EOI rubbish to separate our workers is a shameful example of what sort of people might have been needed in the middle of the 40s. The just following order Nuremberg defence may give them some comfort yet it is them that will be betrayed in short time be assured then who will be there for them? Now if you want to defeat this mess post the strike support which we must deliver on and you colleagues in NPS no one is safe in either organisation and the work will be destructive for you in time. We must all not do work that is not in your original job description .Wait until we see the variations in writing and directed to do such work but be as slow and as failing as you dare ! Do not prop up the fledgling NPS do not generate cover or support do your hours work to rule and in the longer terms it will collapse as will the tories and the Lib dems for their betrayal.

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  4. As a probation manager and loyal napo member I am disgusted at the comments made by anon 21.58 and 23.47. I would distance myself and most of my management colleagues from this uncaring post. I witnessed first hand the absolute distress, frustration and helplessness of wonderful professional dedicated staff who have been treated so appallingly that it has negatively impacted on my emotional well being. How people like this poster ever got into management beggars belief, how about principles if treating colleagues with respect, valuing them, demonstrating understanding of their professional and personal pain. I bet your team hates you

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    1. As an SPO and a member of NAPO I support what you are saying.My last comment on this blog got caught between th exchange between the manager above and someone who is feeling very angry about what has happened.JFDI only works in command structures where there is a different culture that stsff buy into . The Probation Sservice cannot operate like that given what it does.
      What also makes me angry is the deception going on about costs of TR.Each Trust is footing the real cost.I would love to get on with my real job but I get directed to do hefty pieces of work trying to make thre extra layer of beaurocracy TR has introduced. Beware bidders NOMS have rigged it so most cases will come your way but you willnot have the staff. It takes months for a new PSO to pick it all up and you wil have todo the training. After 38 years in the service I do not intend to share my knowledge to the unknown private company I have been auto assigned to .No EOI for me, thsnk you

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  5. Best wishes to all for a solid, successful strike. The fight ain't over yet.
    from a retired PO.

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  6. A simple message to all those who continue to keep their heads down and be good little drones...the only remaining force, as weak as it is, to fight for terms and conditions is NAPO therefore think and think again all you "I cant afford its", all you "Its a done deals", all you "They've done nothing for me" all you "I've got a family to feed" all you "There's not been a ballot"...examine your consciences this weekend and do one of two things....come out at lunchtime on Monday or prepare and submit your resignation from the union on Monday afternoon....I'd rather be in a weak union of dedicated members than one were the notion of togetherness is an alient concept.....this may be Dunkirk 1940 esq but look what happened in the end....

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  7. Anon 08:12 posted that Tornado teams on the stand by after wing stand off at HMP Northumberland a Sodexo prison. I work in a prison, frustration and anger are palpable. There are simply not enough staff to listen and address the many real problems the men have. Someone is going to be killed if this omnishambles is not stopped. The Criminal Justice system is in meltdown and it only just begun.

    Papa

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    1. http://www.bromsgrovestandard.co.uk/2014/03/29/news-Prisoner-found-hanged-at-HMP-Hewell-months-after-death-criticism-100967.html

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    2. When in the role of a PO seconded To HMP I witnessed a wing 'going off' - it was a terrifying experience. My respect for HMPS staff was immeasurable as I witnessed them contain and resolve the incident. The noise and adrenalin levels were indescribable. Most prisoners were shitting themselves but caught up in the moment and egged on by some very dangerous individuals trying to orchestrate mayhem. It was what I imagine one of Dante's circles of hell resembled.

      Sodexo and co have no idea how powerful and intoxicating is the mixture they are brewing up with their 'freeflow' ideas and fuck all staffing levels. However much Wright insists that prisoners will be prosecuted for assaulting staff (@ justice select committee) it won't bring back the officer who's been killed, or maimed,or traumatised.

      The causes of any incidents are the responsibility of the irresponsible MoJ and the greedy, cost-cutting businesses who have paved the way for the tragedies that are inevitable in the near future.

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    3. 'Nevertheless the introduction of ‘free flow’, which enabled most prisoners to move freely within the prison during the core day, was a major improvement and helped to normalise the atmosphere' (Inspectorate Report, Magaberry Prison, Dec 2012) I don't think we should assume that 'free flow' is a bad idea as it can provide a counterbalance to overweening security.

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    4. Fair point, although it has to be in a safe and appropriate context - and managed by experienced and sufficient staff.

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    5. I realised the reality of being in a prison, in any capacity, when I saw the chain that was - in training - brought out to fix to a wing gate to 'the centre' that WOULD if absolutely necessary be used in seconds - accepting the loss of a wing in order to 'save' a gaol.

      Staff or visitors on the 'fives' or the far end of any landing - could find themselves on the danger side - it has happened - I am almost sure at Strangeways in about 1990 (there were deaths - I do not remember the detail) and I think the Government accepted in principal the Woolf's report, that we need to move to a sytsem of small local gaols as near to the homes of prisoners as is practically possible.

      Our parliament seems to have accepted a plan for a gaol for 2,100 in North Wales!

      A local prison is LONG overdue in N Wales but not for 2,100 in Wrexham - almost bound to draw in folk from Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Midlands as well as Mid Wales.

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    6. A PRISONER at HMP Hewell has been found hanging just two months after a report criticised the amount of deaths there.

      Worcestershire Coroners Service confirmed Scott Brian Cattell died on Tuesday (March 25). The 43-year-old was found hanging in his cell and an inquest has been opened and adjourned awaiting reports.

      A Prison Service spokeswoman said he was found unresponsive at 7.45pm, following which prison staff attempted CPR and paramedics attended, but he was pronounced dead at 8.36pm.

      She added: "As with all deaths in custody, the Independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will conduct an investigation."

      It comes after The Standard reported in January that Hewell was one of the worst in the UK for suicides and murders.

      Figures taken from the Ministry of Justice's records and released by the Howard League for Penal Reform showed five deaths were recorded at the Tardebigge prison in 2013 - three suicides, one murder and one death which had not yet been classified.

      At the time, Howard League chief executive Frances Crook, said each death in custody was a tragedy and almost all of them were preventable.

      "The responsibility for an increase in the number of people who take their own lives in prison lies squarely with those who advocate putting behind bars more and more people who do not need to be there."



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  8. I'm self employed and sub contract my skills to small businesses, I previously voted conservative, however, I have an interest in what is going on in Probation, as sadly, my son is incarcerated and I have been humbled by the service and support my wife and I have been provided by a Probation Officer. She has been there, every time we had a question and she writes regularly to my son, which I know he finds very comforting and reassuring. I follow this blog, out of interest, as I had previously no experience with the Criminal Justice System and I had real concerns as to the way my son is treated in prison and what will be there for him on release. I don't know all the ins and outs, but what I can say is I will not be voting for the conservatives ever again and I feel for all those working in Probation at this awful time and I fear for the safety and well being of my son.

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    1. Thanks for that as I suspect we don't have that many clients or family members reading the blog - most tend to post pretty negative stuff on the Prisoners Families Website so it's good to hear another view.

      Again, thanks for your support and acknowledgement of a professional job being undertaken on behalf of your son and the wider community.

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    2. I reciprocate those thanks and remember particularly when I worked in a prison the shock family members, expressed when they realised prison is nothing like the soft option many parliamentarians and media people portray.

      Please, please convey your experience to your MP and anonymously to the media, especially next week, when the naysayers will be out as very reluctantly probation workers will for the fifth or sixth time ever in 107 years take strike action for a total of less than 10 days - always primarily to uphold the rights of others along with their own rights to fair terms of employment.

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    3. As if on cue a letter from The Epsom Guardian; -

      http://www.epsomguardian.co.uk/yoursay/letters/11101351.Prison_is_depriving_men_of_their_human_rights/?ref=twtrec&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

      "Letter to the Editor: Prison is depriving men of their human rights
      =================================================

      Highdown prison is pictured.

      I agree with all that has been highlighted in the report (Staff shortages denied at jail deemed to be "in crisis", March 13) My issues are the waiting we endure as visitors and then only receiving a short visit. My son complains of only being out of his cell for a very short time, having his meals in his cell, not being allowed to use the showers and having to wash in his cell.

      My biggest grievance is that my son is in severe pain with his teeth. The prison dentist refuses to take him to the hospital after diagnosing that two teeth need fillings, two need to come out and he has an infection. Besides the pain, the infection is worsening, my son is swallowing and spitting out puss.

      The prison has a duty of care for all these men and it is depriving them of their human rights.

      Name supplied
      via email "

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  9. I am not sure why managers get berated when they say we are doing what we are told to do. Isn't this what all ranks in probation have been doing for the last decade and more? We all know what 'instructed' and 'directed' mean? Managers enjoy no greater choices than maingrade staff.

    I don't think either that hard-heartedness increases as one climbs the management chain. There are some exceptional middle and senior managers, but they are exceptions. I have seen how the rest manage, say, sickness absence and discipline cases - which has been to keep to a jaundiced and biased HR script.

    In the main, whether you call it robust or callous management, it's not out of kilter with the current dominant probation ethos, however much we may wish to romanticise otherwise. The Trusts have not been good custodians of probation values or professional ethics and the unions have no unity. Like the barristers they have their own agendas - which, ultimately, boils down to market share. We have Napo still impassioned by TR while Unison and the GMB go quietly, though, to be fair, they did sign a joint letter to the Minister!

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  10. HMP Northumberland - POA say Sodexo placed profit above safety after cutting 200 jobs in last six months since taking over the running of the prison from the public sector. One wing of the prison reported to be badly damaged after 50 prisoners refused to go to their cells.

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  11. I don't know if this has been posted but is worth sharing if not. There is also a lot of talk on social media about barristers coming to the rally to support us regardless of the CBA agreement.

    http://www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk/news/news_detail.cfm?iNewsID=935

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    1. Link to barrister's letter explaing her anger at CBA decision

      http://www.gardencourtchambers.co.uk/imageUpload/File/Dear%2520Nigel%2520-%2520Brendas%2520letter%2520to%2520Nigel.pdf

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  12. Dean Rogers from NAPO is suggesting there is only Sodexho in the competition for Northumria "Strong rumour Northumbria prison conteactors only bidder left 4 Northumbria probation contract. Up to MoJ / NOMS to quickly clarify..." Has anyone got news on that , surely a competion is more than one !

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    1. No inside info but Sodexo meets MoJ criteria, and had to be the favourite of the apparently 3 bidders left, the other two, if still in the process aren't in the same league. Most of us up here expecting Sodexo. Wouldn't be surprised if DTV in same position .

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    2. There's good money on Sodexo cleaning up in the north generally, with Capita looking good for the SE. There'll be a token mutual or two, but overall CG aint going to risk his pet project on amateur primes, he'll be wanting well-heeled, hard-nosed businesses who can spin their profit into public savings, who can paint a magpie-shiny gloss finish over the unprepared surface, and who will show their appreciation for a trouser-filling contract. A 'Fur coat, no knickers' distraction theft - to avoid reputational damage you simply restructure, pay off the 'guilty', and start again - having humbly submitted yourself to the government's cleansing procedures (and no doubt treated some key figures rather well along the way).

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    3. Someone was asking for evidence of the £20k salary figure recently. Here's a Sodexo job up for grabs, Team Leader in OMU at HMP Forest Bank - £25k, but with free meals and parking! So if thats a team leader salary, £20k aint a bad guesstimate for "offender managers".

      http://www.sodexojobs.co.uk/jobs/job/Team-Leader-Offender-Management-unit/10284

      Experienced POs at the upper end of scale 4 are, has been mooted for a while now, going to be too expensive for CRCs at £35k+. The brass will go to a layer of performance-orientated management and the shareholders. Per the 'agreement', 7 months from share-sale those expensive, experienced POs will be facing compulsory redundancies.

      It would be kinder and more humane if MoJ/NOMS let them go on VR with whats left of any dignity. Its likely to be less painful all-round. It'll remove any prehistoric resistance, it'll make for an easier transition to the new culture and practices, it'll mean a more malleable workforce from the off without any woolly social work ethical nonsense getting in the way.

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    4. In fact it would make even more sense now that its clear most of the Trust managers are slipping neatly into the newly created NPS and CRC roles, leaving mainly Trust admin staff to take the hit.

      Use VR as the 21stC equivalent of the comet that wiped out the dinosaurs. Those that want to stay can... I'll be off like a shot, crocheting muesli, saving weevils and being creative with recycled waste products.

      (I think its the clocks going forward thats affected me today).

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    5. On VR, please don't be fooled by the number of senior managers staying in NPS and CRC, Remember that they can take VR and then work until 2015, trousering an extra years salary on top. They will then see this disgraceful process through and knowing they are not affected by it and have their publicly funded exit route. Grayling's minions indeed. Why do you think their was no defence of us from the Senior Managers in the Trusts. Someone cleverer than me should submit a FOI to ask how many Senior Managers have accepted VR deferred until 2015.

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    6. If you go to the "whatdotheyknow" webpage they facilitate FOI requests - they're easy-peasy. Give it a go.

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  13. Sodexo is North has recruited a number of ex probation ex prison managers staff as consultants on daily rates between £200 and £500 so have got some senior people on board with knowledge of both local probation and prisons. They have not finished with their prison acquisitions either. They will grown either in first phase or picking off struggling mutuals ( prediction) in second phase they want a "discrete" area for economies of scale and to bring in wholesale new system in development.

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  14. How we (Conservatives) would change things

    Is any of it familiar?

    Does it explain why the maximum number of contracts to be held by any one company is five - does it fit into how things are shaping up in the North East?

    Read more here - please -

    http://www.napo2.org.uk/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=601

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    1. What a pity no-one spotted this before, we might have stood a better fight knowing what we were dealing with. As it is, we've spent the last 7 years wrestling with cold spaghetti, naiively trusting in our well paid union officials to keep their eye on the ball for us - we hadn't figured out that meant playing pocket snooker and making like Benny Hill. Meantime, noms & the mandarins have been plotting away, forging their empire in the bowels of Petty France, etc etc.

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    2. I expect that some connected with probation 'have been in the know' throughout.

      Maybe two year appointments to Napo's NEC will help, some more folk to get a better overall understanding.

      Clearly Napo folk could have made better use of The Professional Committee, that would have made the Probation Institute ambush, easier to resist, but we are where we are - the policy writers do not have a perfect plan they can pull of a shelf and roll out anymore than do isolated practitioners - we need each other.

      Better to begin to see the dots now, so that some, at least can began to be joined up, than never to have realised!

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  15. well done Andrew ! I think you are correct, "fee-earning probation and prison trust", I reckon Sodexo to take whole of North ( with possibly the DTV staff mutual being allowed through as a sop, to be taken over in phase two).

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    1. So - if it is Sodexo for the north and NOT Serco for London, can we work out what is likely elsewhere?

      And if there was a pre arranged 'grand plan' in draft can some investigative journalistic type activities, flush it out - get quotes and use it to bring the whole lot down, perhaps with the Judicial Review in mind, and does it say anything about other Conservative and Lib Dem Policy making initiatives - are we all being duped - including MANY naive parliamentarians?

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  16. For information, the VR scheme has not yet been launched. The only people who will have VR arrangements made now will be those CEO's who do not wish to continue or who don't have an assigned role. VR will be limited only to those roles that are over subscribed or no longer required under the new arrangements. I believe staff should be compensated for losing their jobs- most will find it hard to find further work. Hardly on the same scale as the banking industry is it?!

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