Founded 1980
Chair:        
Secretary: 
Treasurer: 

Graham Smith
Jan Thompson
Graham Mumby-Croft


Graham Smith JP
 Issue No. 83 40th Anniversary edition 2020
This is me in colour on the Tarka cycle trail in Barnstaple North Devon in late June 2020. Life goes on.

Dear members, will life ever be the same again? The past few months have been a testing time for us all whether you are a retired Governor or in an operational setting which I’m sure we all appreciate has challenged even HMPPS staff daily. Key workers indeed! In incident training we used to try to define “When is an incident over?” this incident may take some time yet. I hope you are all as safe and well as you can be expected and avoiding the virus as much as you can. I seem to have 2 wardrobes of stuff I do not need. Email your stories, how have you managed in self isolation?

This edition celebrates 40 years of the RPGA newsletter so we thought a colour publication would mark this special event. Our thanks to Paul Laxton, our editor for the extra work he has put into this edition. Our AGM this year will not go ahead at the PGA conference as it is cancelled. We have made alternative arrangements for the AGM to be hosted 10th November. Details are outlined in this edition. The AGM will see the departure from our committee of David Taylor who has contributed common sense, humour and cricket stories for the past few years and we shall be sad to see him go. Thank you David! Would you like to join the RPGA committee? Let us know if you would you will be welcome.

Are you one of those folk now using the “ZOOM” application to communicate virtually with friends, committees and others? Your committee have met twice on ZOOM so far to improve the website which we would encourage you to visit and give us your ideas on how we can improve it. (rpga.org.uk) ZOOM has enabled us run the association business as smoothly as we can and our treasurer has been pleased it has saved us travel costs too! You will note from his section in this newsletter that we continue to be in stable financial position. Thanks to Graham Mumby-Croft for keeping us in the black.

I make the annual appeal for items of interest for the newsletter past experiences in your career, things you have done in retirement, great places to visit with photos if possible. Our editor will welcome your contributions as will Roger Outram, our letters and email coordinator. Contact information is in this edition. 
 

I place on record my thanks to the RPGA committee for their work during the last 12 months. Next year will be a challenge for us to improve two way communications with members and increase membership. The world may seem to be on hold but we will go on!

GRAHAM SMITH, RPGA CHAIRMAN