reindeer, up to 70% of staff will move across to the private 'holding' company, which will be done before those bidders have won their contracts, and before the government, or those bidders, will know what they are going to actually be doing within their roles.
I mean, for me, it sucks. It sucks big time, but in reality, my time within probation is drawing to an end, due to other reasons. This is bigger than me. Even if I end up working for a private company, I will have a job (until they make redundancies following winning their contracts, then it's not secure). I am under absolutely no illusions about my own fate. I have things to fall back on whatever the future holds for me. I have the skills to make my future work.
BUT. The reason I have done my job, my career, is to support, encourage, and motivate positive change to those who, for whatever reason have fucked up. And, where they continually choose to fuck up, to make sure that the public is kept safe, to protect the victims from further harm, to work to ensure there are not more victims. If this moves to G4S, the compassion, the underpinning belief that people can change, the absolute understanding of what people need in place to make changes, and the dedication and conviction to make tough decisions when those changes are not being made, and people become at risk of harm, all those things will become irrelevant. It will not be about the best support for those people, believing they can change, it will not be about ensuring the if the right decision is to return to court to protect the public from harm then it will be done, it will be about 'will this decision cost us money? will this decision affect our 'reconviction rates'. And that means that corners will be cut, choices will not be offered, and decisions to send to court, or recall to prison will not be made if it means losing money. And in those situations, victims could die.
That is bigger than me.