Nottinghamshire Police Federation secretary Tom Hill says the branch will be able to provide greater representation than ever before following the recent elections.

Tom, who has been re-elected as branch secretary, said he was delighted with members’ engagement in the voting process.

A total of 11 new reps have been voted in, making up half of the branch council.

And Tom said some are from areas of the Force that have not previously been represented on the council.

He said: “I’m really excited to be in post and looking forward to continuing our work and growing the branch.

Full strength

“We’re back up to full strength on the council. We had 11 new reps, and we’re pleased to have them on board with lots of new ideas.

"We wish them all well.

“One of the really positive things is we’ll be engaging with new people from different areas of the Force.

“We’ll be reaching teams and departments where we didn't have a rep or point of contact before.

“We’ll be spreading our work, representation, and messages a bit further afield.

Branch secretary Tom Hill.

“I’m really pleased with the amount of interest we got for the council election and new reps,” he added.

Tom said one of the main concerns for members was around staffing, and the Federation would continue its work in holding the Force to account.

He said: “A big issue is around staffing ratios, and making sure staff are in the right place.

“For instance, we get a lot of reports about shortages on response.

“So it’s holding the force to account to make sure the resources are in the right place at the right time.”

Another concern of members that the branch was focused on was a national issue around pensions, Tom said.

“It’s one of the biggest issues people contact us about,” he said.

Pension

“There is a bit of misconception with people worrying they’ve not got their statements, so they’re not going to get their pension.

“So there's a bit of work to do with that.

“I don't think we're any different in Nottinghamshire compared to other forces, with how the pension changes have been rolled out and the delays in people getting their statements.

“That's another area we’ll be holding the Force to account.”

Tom said a big priority was to support the new reps.

“We need to ensure all new reps get sufficient training and are empowered by us to go out, represent the members, and do what they were elected to do,” he said.

READ MORE: Members' hard work praised as Force comes out of special measures.