Aims
- Represent & promote the interest of members in all dealings with the National Offender Management Service, Ministry of Justice and Community Justice Authorities.
- Promote excellence in public sector prison delivery, assuring safety, security, decency and substantive regimes.
- Establish representation in all consultative committees concerned with Offender Management, penal policy, sentencing strategy & organisational development.
- To report on, and respond to, Prison Service Strategy.
- Promote the role of Operational Governors within the Offender Management System
- To operate within & promote wherever possible the principles contained within NOMS strategic and business plans.
- Assist members with personal employment-related issues, giving support and securing legal advice where appropriate.
Principal Functions
- Maintain and promote equality and diversity as part of all our activities.
- Influence policy developed by the Prison Service, NOMS and the Ministry of Justice for Public Sector Prisons and communicate the views of membership to HMPS and NOMS, through negotiation, consultation and communication.
- Openly promote the aims, objectives and views of the association through all available channels of communication.
- Manage, develop & publish an effective information system with the membership and others.
- Continually seek to improve pay and conditions for all membership, and to align those pay and conditions with comparable organisations.
- Ensure that the membership receive accredited training in order to develop professional standards and competencies.
- Establish partnership with key stakeholders including those within the Criminal Justice Systems and ‘not for profit’ and community agencies.
- Initiate and respond to international opportunities to explore common interest with others in the field of Offender Management throughout the globe.
- Establish and develop the association as an informed professional body within the context of the Criminal justice System through contribution to public debate.
- Develop relationships with media, parliament, politicians and the public, involvement in penal policy, and thereby contributing to any debate on the development and introduction of Penal policy reforms and changes.
- Respond to formal reports by the Justice Committee and other external entities concerned with the work and role of the membership.
- Constantly seek to improve conditions and opportunities to address offenders behaviours in prison and on release.
- Insist on full consultation with employers in any discussions involving matters affecting the membership.
- The PGA believes in a wholly public sector prison Service. It is a fundamental principle of western democracy that the state should control and administer punishment. No civilised society can hire out punishment for profit nor can those responsible for administering the ultimate sanction of the state be accountable to anybody except the Home Secretary and through him, parliament.
- The PGA believes that delivery of punishment by the state is for directly accountable public servants and not for private companies for whom business expansion and accountability to board and shareholders will always come first.