A REVIEW OF POA SUCCESS IN 2025

In 2025, the POA achieved several important advances, reflecting its growing influence and our capacity to secure real improvements for our members in the workforce, on the front line. While the pressures on the Prison Service and other employers remain formidable, the union’s strategic campaigning, negotiation and advocacy have delivered tangible wins this year. One of the most significant successes comes on the pay front. In June 2025, the Ministry of Justice announced it had accepted all of the recommendations of the prison service pay review body. Under that award, entry level prison officers’ salaries rose from £34,494 to £35,875, effective from 1 April 2025. This outcome represented a real-terms pay increase and addressed, at least in part, longstanding concerns of the POA about the erosion of pay under the recruitment and retention crisis. The POA’s earlier communication had made clear that one of its key lines of campaign in 2025 would be pay justice and restoration of lost value. It is also worth noting that, while the POA is campaigning hard for better pay, we did accept the interim step of a 4% pay rise in 2025/26 as a welcome baseline and a platform for further advance in future years. That pragmatic stance helps build credibility with government and positions the POA as constructive, rather than purely adversarial.

KEY LINES OF CAMPAIGN

In parallel with pay, the union’s influence has been visible in safety and operational reforms. Our campaign on bodyworn armour, Tasers and Pava has been successful. The POA sharpened its messaging on issues of overcrowding, staff shortages and estate decline. The union’s April 2025 Key Lines document, on which the POA has campaigned this year and will continue to do so going into 2026, highlighted pay and the need for a lower retirement age (highlighting that prison officers are expected to work until 68, while other uniformed services’ retirement age remains at 60). Other key lines include the right to strike in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the health and safety of all those who work in the prison state. That clarity of strategic focus has paid dividends. The POA has a voice in parliament, and is taken more seriously by government and the press, simply because our arguments are all evidence-based.

SCOTLAND

Another measure of success has been the POA’s ability to generate data and evidence to assist its campaigns. For example, in February, the POA in Scotland commissioned a survey of its members into prison overcrowding, publishing the findings and, thereby, raising the profile of the crisis facing Scottish prisons and the danger that presents to staff. This kind of research strengthens the union’s hand when lobbying ministers, agencies or the media. In addition, the SNC has secured improved terms and conditions and pay for our members in Scotland.

NORTHERN IRELAND

The Northern Ireland area committee has also made major inroads in securing better terms, conditions and pay for their members. Our members in Northern Ireland have always worked in a dangerous and unique environment, and it is to the credit of the POA membership and area committee that they continue to push forward on not just pay, terms and conditions, but the health and safety of all the members in Northern Ireland, where our membership continues to grow.

PRIVATE SECTOR MEMBERS, IMMIGRATION SERVICES AND SECURE HOSPITALS

With regards to our members who work in the private sector, immigration services and secure hospitals within the NHS setting, we continue to increase our membership and improve their working lives through negotiations with their respective employers. The POA has obtained justice on pay, terms and conditions, and supported our members in employment tribunals when employers do not treat them with respect, winning compensation for them. Our key document on campaigns includes these sectors as much as our public sector prisons.

RECRUITMENT, STAFFING AND WELFARE

While recruitment and staffing remain acute problems, the POA’s advocacy has helped ensure the issues stay on the agenda. Our insistence that working conditions, pay and staffing levels are all interconnected has resonated with policymakers and the public, and has helped frame the narrative of reform, rather than denial. For example, our submission and campaign materials point out that pay for prison officer grades has fallen 13.1% behind inflation since 2014. Further success lies in the POA’s work to improve member support and representation. Anecdotal feedback from members emphasises the value of the union in providing welfare on wellbeing assistance, branch-level support and collective representation. In a demanding and high-risk profession, the strength of the union’s local branches, and its responsiveness to frontline concerns, are key achievements in themselves.

SUMMARY

The successes of the POA can be summarised as follows:

• Securing a real-terms pay rise for members and an increase in entry level salary, signalling progress in the long battle for pay justice
• Influencing policy and legislation around safety tools for officers, and raising the profile of safety issues in the UK
• Framing a coherent strategic agenda for pay, retirement age, staffing, estate conditions, and health and safety, and communicating it clearly to POA members, government and the media
• Enhancing member support infrastructure, making sure representation and welfare remain strong, despite the high pressures on our members.

Of course, the POA and its members continue to face serious challenges, wherever they work, in respect of overcrowding, rising violence, and the recruitment and retention crisis. For those who work in prisons, the dilapidated estate also looms large. But 2025 has been a year in which the union has made measurable gains, strengthened its voice and positioned itself as a key player in the ongoing reform of the prison service. For members, that means not only concrete improvements, but also a growing sense that their union is delivering results and fighting in their interest. As the POA looks beyond 2025, the question will be how to build on these successes to secure further structural reform, especially in retirement age, the right to strike and major estate investment. The progress made this year gives cause for optimism that the POA is increasingly able to translate the challenges into momentum for change.

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO

I would like to thank every single POA member and the hard-working local committees for everything you do, and for playing your part in making your union successful throughout 2025. Thank you for being a loyal POA member. Our future is safe in your hands. l

STEVE GILLAN
GENERAL SECRETARY