TIME FOR ACTION IS NOW

It’s all change at the top of government yet again. Will this new administration work with the POA to deliver meaningful change at last for a service in crisis?

The election of a new Prime Minister, alongside a new Secretary of State and ministerial team, represents an opportunity for a fresh start. Every incoming government inherits challenges, but few public services face the scale of crisis currently engulfing our prisons. We genuinely hope this new administration will seize the opportunity to work with the Prison Officers’ Association to deliver the change that our members, and the prison system itself, desperately need.

For far too long, prison staff have been expected to do more with less. They have continued to deliver under extraordinary pressure, despite rising violence, chronic staff shortages and a prison estate bursting at the seams. Our members have shown remarkable professionalism and resilience in circumstances that would test any workforce. They deserve more than warm words. They deserve action.

Our message to the new government is clear: we have two overriding priorities.

First, we need a meaningful improvement in the terms and conditions of Prison Officers, backed by sustained investment in staffing levels and pay. Recruitment and retention remain among the greatest challenges facing the prison service. You cannot run safe and decent prisons without sufficient numbers of experienced staff. Every vacant post places greater pressure on those who remain, increasing stress, burnout and, ultimately, driving more experienced officers away from the job. Investment in people is investment in public safety. Competitive pay, improved conditions and a workforce that feels valued are not luxuries, they are necessities if we are serious about creating safer prisons and reducing reoffending.

Alongside this, the government must restore the normal pension age for Prison Officers to 60. It is simply unreasonable to expect Prison Officers to continue working in what remains one of the most hostile and violent workplaces in the world until state pension age. Every day, our members face assaults, exposure to dangerous substances, serious incidents and immense psychological pressure. No politician would seriously argue that this level of physical and mental demand can safely continue into a person’s late 60s. The evidence is overwhelming. The job has changed beyond recognition. Violence has increased dramatically, organised crime continues to infiltrate our prisons and the complexity of the prison population has grown significantly. Returning the retirement age to 60 is not simply a matter of fairness, it is essential for operational effectiveness, staff welfare and public safety.

Our second priority is equally fundamental. The government must restore the Prison Officers’ right to strike.

The right to withdraw one’s labour is a basic workplace human right enjoyed by workers across virtually every sector. Prison Officers remain one of the very few groups denied this fundamental freedom. While our members have always demonstrated their commitment to public service and public protection, they should not be denied the same employment rights afforded to others simply because of their profession. Restoring this right would demonstrate genuine respect for Prison Officers as professional workers and would help rebalance the employment relationship that has been one-sided for far too long.

We also welcome the announcement of the Independent review of the prison service in England and Wales, chaired by former Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

The POA has submitted comprehensive written evidence to the review, focusing on the key themes identified within its terms of reference: safety and decency, staffing, security and prison capacity. Safety must remain the overriding priority within every prison. Without safety there can be no rehabilitation. Without sufficient staffing there can be no meaningful regime. Without security there can be no confidence in the justice system. Without addressing capacity, every other reform risks failure.

Our submission draws upon the experience of frontline Prison Officers who understand better than anyone the challenges facing our prisons. We hope the review will produce practical recommendations that governments of all political persuasions will finally have the courage to implement.

One issue that continues to generate understandable anger among serving and retired members is the disgraceful handling of public sector pensions by Capita. The situation has become nothing short of a national scandal. It is completely unacceptable that some members are still waiting for their pension payments, inefficiency payments or retirement lump sums more than 12 months after retiring or leaving the service on medical inefficiency grounds. Individuals who have dedicated decades of loyal service to protecting the public should not spend their retirement worrying about whether they will receive the money they have earned.

These delays have caused genuine financial hardship, unnecessary anxiety and immense distress for members and their families. Many have been forced to borrow money, delay major life decisions or rely on savings while waiting for pension benefits that should have been paid promptly.

This cannot continue.

The government must urgently agree appropriate compensation for every individual affected by these wholly unacceptable delays. Members should not have to fight for redress after already enduring months of uncertainty through no fault of their own. Equally importantly, the administration of public sector pensions should be brought back in-house. The outsourcing experiment has failed. Public servants deserve a pensions administration service that is accountable, properly resourced and focused on delivering for members rather than meeting contractual targets. It should not fall to civil service trade unions to pursue legal proceedings simply to secure compensation for failures that are plainly evident. Government must accept responsibility, acknowledge the damage caused and put matters right without forcing unions into lengthy legal battles.

Our members deserve better.

The POA will continue to campaign relentlessly for safer prisons, fair pay, better conditions, proper staffing levels, pension justice and the restoration of the fundamental rights our members deserve. We will continue to challenge those in power whenever necessary, and work constructively whenever progress can be achieved.

Finally, I would like to send every serving member, every retired member and their families my very best wishes. You can be assured of one thing above all else, I will never stop fighting for you.

Until next time, stay safe, look after each other and thank you for everything you do. l