The latest update with regard to the review of Injury Awards remains the same - no news is good news! It is a problem throughout the country to varying degrees and will not be ‘going away’. There are a number of issues in the offing that I am watching with increasing disquiet. Needless to say as soon as I have any definite information to impart you will hear about it.

I posed the question about a time element with regard to reviews and the perceived transfer of ‘ownership’ if an excessive time has elapsed without ANY form of review or action. Note has been taken of the suggestion and again there is no definitive answer to date.

I was deeply saddened and shocked to receive a report outlining the removal of one of the force welfare officers and the loss of ALL welfare provision by the force for retired officers and their families. The Chairman and I saw the Chief Constable and received his verbal assurance that welfare provision WOULD be retained for all retired officers and their families. This was very good news but it was tempered by the knowledge that the force was indeed reducing the welfare officers to one person. The chairman and I put over our point of view but in reality we are in no position to affect the outcome. Brian Fawcett and Margaret Hunter have worked tirelessly for the best interests of all serving and retired officers and they have asked me to thank everyone for the support and words of encouragement that they have received. As I write this they are attending a meeting of deselection, in other words they are meeting their superiors to decide who is good enough to stay! After all the care they have taken on our behalf it is shameful to see them being treated in this way. It has caused as much shock for the serving officers associations, all of whom have shown their support for Brian and Margaret.

I assured the Chief Constable that I would NOT include my letter in this newsletter after his verbal promise to us and I will keep to that but I have heard that the Occupational Health Department still wants to cease its dealings with retired officers. If that happens then I am sure Peter and I will be straight back to the Chief Constable’s door.

We will have to wait and see what happens next!

I am also repeating my comments with regard to the Police Dependants Trust. I received a number of registration requests but the response was not as great as I expected. The PDT was set up in the late 60’s as a charity solely for the purpose of helping police officers and/or their families, who were either killed or seriously incapacitated due to the special hazards of policing. At the present time the fund stands at almost £20 million. Anyone in receipt of an injury award is eligible to make a claim if they need assistance and must be registered. Police forces do not register injured officers as a matter of course and therefore there are a large number of officers not registered. Cleveland has something like 200 eligible officers and families but less than 10% appear to be registered at the moment. There are also a number of widows who may also be eligible through their husband’s curtailed service through injury, there are no apparent lists for them. The PDT would like to update these lists and I have offered to assist them in conjunction with the welfare officers.

If you are in receipt of an injury award, or your husband / wife was in receipt of an injury award then you will be entitled to register. If you wish to do so please contact me by telephone or letter and I will forward a registration form to you for completion along with a reply envelope. I will then take the responses to the welfare department for signature by the Chief Officer to confirm the validity of the registration. If this was done on an individual basis by the welfare department the time involved could be excessive. I also have claim forms that can be added with the registration that I can deal with in the same manner. If you have any questions please feel free to ring me and I can provide more information. You may be surprised just what you are entitled to claim for!

There are a number of benefits that you may have, or are entitled to claim, many of which are NOT means tested. It is possible you are missing out on extra assistance particularly if you have been retired for some time and have not previously made any claim. Disability Living allowance is given for mobility and also for care and can reach over £100 per week tax free. If you leave it until you reach 65 it becomes Attendance Allowance and the current maximum is just over £57. If you would like some help or advice please ring me on 01642/714727, or alternatively ring the Angela Maxwell helpline number printed in Narpo News.