National Association of Retired Police Officers (NARPO) London Branch

JOB OPPORTUNITY Process Servers required in London and the Home Counties. Click here. NARPO NEWS Available via Narpo.org Get Issues 64 to 68 in full (Password Protected) Read your copy online

MPS Awards Do you know of a retired officer who has or currently is providing outstanding service to police pensioners? Contact Bob Ferris, Narpo (London Branch) Chairman, as soon as you can and all will be revealed. Subscriptions increase We have received notification from NARPO HQ that the subscriptions have been increased by 8p per month. As a consequence, London police pensioners will pay £1.58 from their pension – starting with the January payment. There has been no increase for widow/ers’ contributions. Their subscription remains 35p per month. But not our membership (just yet!) Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe has stated that Regulation A19 – which can require anyone below Chief Officer rank with at least 30 years of service to retire – is not being considered for use as a means for cutting costs. “I just wanted to take the opportunity to spell out my position on that to you as clearly as I can, because I know that some of you may be worried about it,” the Commissioner said in a recent Met-wide video message. “I have no plans to use A19. I would see it as a last resort, because I think it’s too much of a blunt instrument to be a credible option for saving money as things stand. “Having said that, though, the reality of the cuts we’re being asked to make over the next few years mean that I’m not in a position to sit here today and guarantee it would never be used. That just wouldn’t be fair. But equally, I want to be completely clear that we have no plans to implement it.” (from the December/January “The Job”) Wildlife Crime - 2 February 2012 – 6:30 – 7:30pm Ian Knox shares stories of wildlife crime. CSI Havering - 9th February 2012, 6-7pm Helen Windsor, Forensic Officer discusses the advances in forensics and the role it plays in catching criminals and successful court cases. To Catch a Smuggler - Thursday, 23 February 2012, 6-7pm Steve Bridle, of HM Revenue and Customs provides an entertaining evening covering the history of smuggling to current day stories of smuggling techniques. A Fitting Punishment - Thursday, 6 March 2012 - 6-7pm Mike Hughes, author of Judgment Impaired shares his experiences as a Police Officer in dealing with serious crime, the limitations of the legal system, the impact on the victim and the ineffectiveness of the justice system. All talks are held at Havering Museum and refreshments will be served. Tickets are £3.50 each and can be purchased from the Museum in person or reserved by telephone. To reserve tickets telephone 01708 766 571. Payment must be made prior to each event. Cheques should be made payable to Havering Museum Ltd and sent to 19-21 High Street, Romford, RM1 1JU. Can You Ignore This? Current statistics indicate that one in seven of us are likely to require care at a residential care home in old age. If you have over £23,000, your local council will assess you as able to pay all your care home fees. The money you have is called 'capital' and will include savings, investments and property (including your home). If you require care at a residential care home you may have to sell your home when your other capital has been spent. Transferring your capital or setting up a trust in order to avoid the payment of such fees in the future will not necessarily protect your savings or your home when and if the time comes. At privately run residential care facilities, those who have over £23,000 capital are charged considerably more, for exactly the same service, than those who are fully state funded. The Age UK media team is looking for older people (and/ or their relatives) to share their experiences of the care system and support the charity’s media work to radically reform the current care and support system. They would like to hear from anyone with a story to tell about their care, in particular they would like to hear from older people and their families who: Receive Care at Home Have concerns about the time spent caring and the quality of care older people receive Receive care at home but are worried about council cut-backs Can talk about the financial strain of paying for care Live in a Care Home Have had to sell their home / parents’ home to pay for care Have a loved one in a care home and can talk about any difficulties they had sorting out that care Live in a Southern Cross care home or who has a relative who lives in one They are also keen to hear from anyone who is willing to share their personal experiences of care – even if they do not fit into the above categories. If you would be prepared to have a brief telephone conversation with Age UK’s researcher, please contact the Age UK Case Study Researcher, Pamela Wilkinson on Tel: 0121 427 8663 Email:pamela.wilkinson@ageuk.org.uk Web: www.ageuk.org.uk Join thousands of runners keeping older people warm and well this winter, both locally and around the country. Wrap Up and Run is part of Spread the Warmth which aims to prevent thousands of older people suffering needlessly during the winter months by ensuring they have the help and support they need at this time of year. Help Spread the Warmth across the UK by registering for your local run today. Crystal Palace –Sunday 4 March 2012 Southport – Sunday 4 March 2012 Tatton Park, Cheshire – Sunday 11 March 2012 Harewood House, Leeds – Sunday 18 March 2012 Exeter – Sunday 25 March 2012 Coventry – Sunday 25 March 2012 Enter online at www.ageuk.org.uk/10k or call 0800 169 87 87 Villas @ NARPO Thanks to a kind offer from Lord Wolf of Barleugh and his family, NARPO have access to two of the family villas for an initial period up to September 2013. Villa Endymion is situated in Bloemendaal a pretty town on the outskirts of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Villa Scylla is situated in the suburbs of Lavena Ponte Tresa directly on Lake Lugarno, Italy near to its border with Switzerland. Access to the villas will be free to NARPO members and their party and neither EPS nor NARPO are making any charge for either the access to the properties or the administration of the booking process. Please see NARPO Branch Circular 37/11 for more information. Please submit any views regarding comment on this site, any observations regarding content and/or details of apparently faulty links to the Website Manager at londonnarpo.website@gmx.co.uk © Copyright NARPO (London Branch), All rights reserved. With thanks to Steve’s templates