|
|
|
Branch of the Year Award 2009
Dear All,
This is the first opportunity I have had to talk to you about the great
honour of representing our Branch at the above for the second year running
and once again being presented with first of all a bottle of champagne
(raffled at our AGM in case you were wondering!) and then the Runner Up
for the Branch of the Year.
We are obviously a little disappointed that we did not receive the
ultimate accolade after coming so close again. But we have to be realistic
there are 86 Branches in the Region and many have more members than the
total Police Staff of all the five Police Forces put together. In addition
most had been in existence many years before our Branch was even thought
of - so it is a tremendous achievement to be so successful not once but
twice in a row, and not only do we remain 'top of the tree' as far as
Police Branches are concerned we are actually the only one of the 86
Branches to receive consecutive awards.
The awards are based on a criteria that all Branches are judged on and I
had to attend an interview with UNISON Regional Officials and present our
case with all the necessary evidence (bit like a PDR - but for the
Branch). To give you an idea of the competition and how we had to 'up our
game', last year none of the Branches met all the criteria, even the
winners. This time we did achieve that status, but unfortunately some of
the others did as well! Still there's always next year...
It was very pleasing to receive congratulations from other Branches both
on the night and at the Regional Council on the Saturday morning -
although there was a touch of envy from some! (Yes we are not just 9x5
Monday to Friday. We do start work early and finish late - see the time of
this email - and sometimes have to work at weekends!
We continue to strive to provide the best possible service for you, our
members. All the time we are looking for 'Best Practice' and innovations
to keep up our status in the Region and nationally - Awards are a
reflection of what we have been able to achieve. But at the end of the day
you are the most important part of all that we do - without you there
would be no Branch.
Yours in solidarity,
Peter. |
|
