What’s in it for me!!

At Wednesday’s management team we had wide ranging discussions on a variety of topics.  One of these focused upon membership trends.  Clearly, as people are leaving the profession due to local authority cut backs, the number of full members has shown a decrease but is holding up well as a percentage of those still in TS services.  We do look at the reasons for members resigning and one of the worrying trends is that where local authorities have stopped paying membership this is as cited as a reason for not renewing – as someone mentioned to me recently “why should I pay membership when it’s my authority that gets the benefit of discounted training”. 

This blog could not go on to be a paraphrasing of the Life of Brian – 'what have the Romans ever done for us'.  I’ll avoid going in to the fact that we offer one of the cheaper membership rates about, that we bring a benefit to members that is several times the cost of their membership and that we offer a free conference.  

Instead I’ll reflect that having managed a number of services outside trading standards I can tell that they have a different approach to their training and development.  By and large they pay for their own membership, their own training and their own attendance at conference.  For those that have already renewed their membership I thank you. For those that haven’t, I would simply pose the question “whose career is it?”