President ' s Review 2022 / 23
As I come to the end of my two years as President , I have to say that it has been an extraordinary honour and a privilege . I must particularly mention the enjoyment I ' ve had during this time in working with all those members who volunteer for SRP Committees and groups , and it is especially pleasing that we have had another successful year as a Society .
Before our 2022-23 year started as usual with the Annual Conference at Llandudno , a number of members attended the IRPA European Congress in Budapest in early June . It was there that we presented our proposals for hosting the next European Congress in four years ' time . I am pleased to say that our plans were accepted and that the Arena and Convention Centre in Liverpool will host the Congress in June 2026 . This will be the first opportunity for SRP to host such a large event since the Word Congress at Glasgow in 2012 . The venue and surrounding area including Albert Dock and the Pier Head is a wonderful location to hold such an event , which will also act as our Annual Conference that year .
As agreed at the Conference in Bournemouth in 2021 , we were involved in contributing to Her Majesty The Queen ' s Platinum Jubilee Book , and a launch event was also held in early June 2022 which was attended by myself together with Helen Whitehead who is our lead for Equality , Diversity and Inclusion . It was indeed a joyful celebration , held as it was on the day of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant in London . However , it was then very sad to be marking the passing of Her Majesty just a few months later , and as a Royal Chartered Society a letter of condolence was sent to His Majesty The King .
For those of us who made the trip to Llandudno in mid-June for our Annual Conference , it was wonderful to be back to the usual attendance of around 300 delegates . It was indeed a very successful event with a full scientific programme , a very enjoyable social programme , and an excellent exhibition with over 40 participating organisations being represented – the most ever . Aberdeen will have a lot to do to match it , but it will be helped by being a celebration of our 60th anniversary as a Society !
Through my Presidency I committed to continuing with the initiatives started by my predecessor Pete Bryant , namely :
• SUSTAINABILITY of the Profession and Society
• Working in SYNERGY with other organisations , and
• Improving COMMUNICATION with Internal and External Stakeholders
These became the key objectives to be set out in the drafting of the five-year Strategic Plan for the Society . I also suggested that Diversity and Inclusion must be key themes over the next five years and beyond , and that we must continue to strive to ensure that SRP reflects the diversity of the whole RP workforce , regardless of role , gender , age , or sexual orientation . It was apparent that we would need two documents – firstly the Strategic Plan which should set out the Mission as the key aims of the Society , and secondly the Delivery Plan , which should support it by setting out Commitments to achieve the Mission , and by listing specific , achievable , and measurable tasks as a route to meeting those Commitments . This Delivery Plan will then be a living document that evolves through the five-year period , moving on to new tasks as previous ones are completed , and with progress being presented for review by the membership at the AGM each year .
To be inclusive in developing these Plans it was essential that we get the views of the membership so that we understood and could respond to their key priorities and concerns . That was why we asked members to answer a survey on their thoughts about those matters on which SRP should focus , using the results to help the final drafting of the Strategic Plan , and presenting it for discussion with the membership at an Extraordinary General Meeting at the beginning of December . I am very pleased to say that there were a lot of thoughtful responses to the survey , and a good discussion at the meeting leading to unanimous agreement on implementing the Plans . There is now of course work to do as I hand over to our next President , Jennifer Humphries , who will lead on the development and implementation of the Delivery Plan over the next two years .
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