Your Questions on Local Practice
Forums answered:
General Questions
Virtual
Networking and LPFs
Finance
myRPSGB
Branches
National
Pharmacy Boards
LPF
Facilitators
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Q. When the new
professional leadership body (PLB) comes into existence, what will
happen to the RPSGB Branch network?
A. We would like to have as many Local Practice Forums (LPFs) in
place by April 1st 2010 so that all PLB members have access to
either an active or virtual LPF by this time. The TransCom
Prospectus included input from across a wide representation of the
profession and it provided a blueprint for the future of local
networks which would be built around the concept of LPFs. The
Prospectus also clearly stated that LPFs would work in
collaboration with 'existing local arrangements (branches where
valued by members, for example)'.
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Q.
How will LPFs and Branches work and function
together?
A. In the future, the RPSGB will not be able to afford to support
two separate local structures. This means that in any one locality,
one of two things will happen:
1. The local Branch or Branches will evolve into an LPF and
PLB members will receive all of their local services via the LPF
structure and network. As an interim measure 'en route' to a fully
functional LPF, it may be appropriate and in the interest of the
members for the current Branch activity to be adopted by the LPF.
From January 2010, where a functional LPF exists, then the LPF will
be the sole recipient of any central funding from the RPSGB.
2. It is recognised that in some localities the setting up
of an LPF may develop at a slower rate and in this situation where
there is an active Branch then this Branch will continue to receive
direct RPSGB funding (subject to existing individual Branch funds
already available) until such time that an LPF is formed.
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Q. Does this mean that local Branches will at some stage cease
to exist?
A. It is envisaged that Branches will fully transition into an
evolving LPF and the process and timing of this will vary according
to the pace of development within each new LPF. At some stage in
the future, local Branches will cease to function and there may
well be situations where the local LPF leadership team reaches a
pragmatic agreement with local stakeholders for the Branch to
continue for an interim period, again where this is in the interest
of the members. In this situation, the LPF would be accountable for
the local funding and where appropriate would agree any interim
Branch funding. Branches will cease to receive any form of direct
RPSGB funding from January 2012.
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Q. Is there an expectation that the current Branch
committee members will migrate to the new LPF leadership
roles?
A. Current Branch committee members are invaluable in the early
and ongoing development of the LPFs alongside new and emerging
leaders from within the LPF locality. Local members will decide who
forms the new LPF leadership team and in the short term we will
encourage and engage with those members who are willing to act
locally to initiate and support the development of the LPF. We are
hopeful that many of these local leaders will come from the
existing Branch network. The LPF toolkit (page 18 and 19) outlines
a suggested approach to the identification of LPF leadership roles
to support the early selection of the Transitional Steering Group.
Board members can support and advise as appropriate if
necessary.
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Q. How will we know if we have made the right
decision relating to the future of local Branches?
A. We already have some valuable insights and learnings from the
LPF pilot locations in West Yorkshire and Sunderland for example.
We will ensure that all evolving best practices and new ways of
collaborative working are shared with the wider membership via the
LPF toolkit which will soon be available through the PLB website.
In the longer term, the LPF activity and more importantly its
outputs and results will be overseen by the National Pharmacy
Boards. The PLB will also ensure that the views of the members are
sought and captured directly through research and other feedback
processes.
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Q.
What will happen if an LPF is not up and running in my area and
will Branches be able to continue to receive funding for local
activities?
A. By January 2010, there will be a number of locations where
the LPF leadership is not yet fully established. In this case, the
targeted LPF funding for 2010 will be held in reserve by the
appropriate Pharmacy Board and appropriate interim funds released
to Branch members according to the Branch needs until an LPF is
established. The trigger point for the formal recognition of an
active LPF will be subject to the appointment of the LPF Steering
Group.
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Q.
What will happen to any funding held in inactive
Branches?
A. Such funds have been allocated in the past for the
benefit of local members so any funds that currently exist in
inactive Branch locations should be directed towards the new LPF
account for that locality. LPFs are there to support members
locally and this valuable source of funding will be used to support
early and ongoing LPF activity.
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Q. What if the Branch does not want to donate its money
to the LPF?
A. All existing Branch funds (c. £380K - at 1st July
2009) will continue to be held at Branch level. A position of
collaboration, trust and integrity is required at both Branch and
LPF levels to ensure that existing Branch funds are targeted
towards LPF development.
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Q. Will there come a time when Branches stop receiving
funds from the Society?
A. It is envisaged that most Branches will
have evolved to LPFs in the near future. The dual funding of both
the Branch and LPF functions is not sustainable in the
future. All funding to local Branches will cease from January
2012.
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Q. What will happen if a Branch in my locality with whom we
will be jointly forming an LPF has a very healthy bank account and
my Branch only has a small amount in the bank?
A. Prior to the issue of LPF set up funding,
consideration should be given to the accumulative value of Branch
funding in the proposed LPF locality. This will ensure that
valuable RPSGB resource is targeted to those localities where there
is a low level of funding in the combined Branch accounts. We will
further advise members once the LPF locations have been
agreed. We would hope that neighbouring Branches with either
low or high levels of existing funding would work together for the
benefit of the new and wider LPF membership.
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Q. What will happen to the Branch assets e.g. the
Chairman's badge of office or the computer and fax
machine?
A. Those current assets that can be used for future LPF
administrative support e.g. Laptops, faxes etc. should be passed to
the newly formed LPF leadership team by mutual local agreement. In
terms of the Chairman's badges or trophies, the Branches can decide
for themselves on how best to transfer or donate these assets to
existing members. In the past when Branches have no longer
needed these items they have been donated to the Society's museum
for posterity. Further guidance will be offered in due course
should there be no local solution.
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Q. I am currently a local Branch treasurer. On what basis will
LPF funding be allocated in the future?
A. Year 1 - Core funding (2010) for LPFs will be based
mainly on RPSGB headcount in that LPF locality as per current
Branch model. Further details on other sources of funding are
contained in the LPF Toolkit on page 30.
Year 2 - The National Pharmacy Boards will announce the funding
mechanisms for 2011 at a later date.
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Q.
What about my attendance at the BRM and the BRSM?
A. There are currently no plans for BRSM and BRM meetings for
2010. The RPSGB will continue to provide meeting opportunities and
events to both share new ideas and general progress as well as
listening to member feedback. To this effect, the LPFs may be
invited to nominate and send representatives to centrally held
meetings, the dates and frequency of which are yet to be
determined.
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Q.
How do I find out more about the development of LPFs?
A. LPFs are developing with pace now, and more information can
be found from the LPF toolkit which is available on the PLB website
www.pharmacyplb.com, or by
contacting your Local Practice Forum Facilitator.
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Q. I currently keep a database of emails of members on my
PC? I do not wish to use the emails for members through
myRPSGB?
A. It is important that Branches and LPFs adhere to DPA
legislation. This data is not owned by the Branch or LPFs but by
the Society, which takes its data protection responsibilities very
seriously. The system set up by the Society is to assist with
member communication and is quick and easy to use.
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Q. I have friends who are currently pharmacists but who
do not plan to join the new PLB but want to still attend the local
LPF? How will this be dealt with?
A. If a pharmacist is eligible to join the PLB but chooses not
to subscribe to the new membership, then that pharmacist will not
receive the services and benefits afforded to paying members. This
means that if you are not a member of the PLB then you will not be
able to attend LPF meetings or have access to other LPF or wider
RPSGB services. There may be rare occasions where a non member in
recognition of their role and expertise, could add real value to
the work of the LPF. In these situations and solely where there is
a single and focused topic or piece of work, then the LPF Steering
Group can authorise the attendance of non members to support such
work which ultimately should benefit the LPF members and/or improve
the standards of healthcare delivery in that locality.
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Q.
Can students and pre-regs attend LPF meetings?
A. It is likely that students and pre-regs will at some
stage be invited to join the
PLB and as such it would be permissible for students and pre-regs
to attend LPF meetings on the invitation of the LPF members.
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Q. Once an LPF is established, does this mean that my
Branch will be dissolved and if so, what is the process for
this?
A. It is expected that clusters of local Branches will form the
foundation of the new LPFs and through mutual agreement between LPF
and Branch leaders there will be a point in time when Branches will
become dissolved but embraced in many respects by the new LPF.
The process for the dissolution of Branches will be defined by
the new PLB Assembly after April 2010.
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Q.
What do I need a LPF for if I have CPPE/WCPPE or NES?
A. These are excellent providers of CE, and we would never plan
to compete with them. However they are not the only source of
CE/CPD and traditionally local Branches and the PJ etc have
provided additional content. LPFs will be a local focus for the
organised collective delivery of CE/CPD to meet the demands of
local members. It will also provide assistance with the
recording of CPD.
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Q. How
soon will the LPF Facilitators be in place?
A. The five LPF Facilitators across GB will be in position from
the 7th December. The Facilitators will undergo an intensive
induction programme and will be visible and available to support
members from around March 2010.
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Q. What will the LPF
Facilitators do?
A. We will provide a detailed explanation in early January of
what the role will and will not do. In the meantime, the key
responsibilities of the LPF Facilitator are outlined in the LPF
toolkit.
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Q. When will all this happen? - especially when will the
Virtual Network will be set up?
A. When a local group will formally commence is up to you,
hopefully soon after the November meetings. The virtual networks
can be initiated as soon as we have the geography sorted out.
We expect a bespoke LPF version of the current trial version of the
Virtual Network to be available in January.
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Q. I have just developed a new Branch website, does that mean
it will be scrapped?
A. Well there are no plans to support Branch activity as
all such effort should go into the virtual LPFs. We are sure that
we can facilitate the transfer of content though, where
possible.
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Q. If you are talking about such a large area - we may need
more help; can we get paid secretarial help?
A. The LPF will be allocated funding and if there are
sufficient funds LPFs may choose external support if this is for
the benefit of the LPF members. The LPF Facilitators will be
working with the Transitional Steering Group leads locally to
ensure efficient ways of working.
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Q. What's wrong with how it is now - why do you want to change
things?
A. You the members requested this change and your
valued contributions to TransCom resulted in the Prospectus. The
LPF concept was born out of this and designed by the membership,
for the membership. Currently the best Branches
are delivering great things but on average across all Branches
there is a maximum of 10% of the current membership, and 0% in some
locations, that attend Branch activities over the year. Attendance
has been falling for several years and we need to find new ways to
attract the 90% of members who do not find value in the current
network. The TransCom Prospectus gave us a blueprint for the new
body and it has described how LPFs will deliver more services than
currently offered by Branches.
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Q. How much are we going to get - we would need to know that to
plan for next year?
A. Again this is dependant upon the location and size of
LPFs so until we get this finalised it is impossible to say.
In broad terms, the funding set aside for 2010 will be broadly the
same as that for Branch support in 2009. Further details on LPF
funding can be found on page 30 of the LPF toolkit. National Boards
will be accountable for allocating the 2010 funding to LPFs and
Branches and this process will be confirmed to members in early
December.
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Q. Can pharmaceutical scientists and pharmacy technicians also
become involved in LPFs?
A. If there is a specific topic or programme of work that is
relevant to the LPF agenda and in turn benefits the local
membership or improves local health outcomes, then the LPF is
empowered to invite scientists or technicians to support this work
only. They will not however have wider access to LPF or PLB driven
events or services.
We are investigating mechanisms to allow for the payment of
attendance fees for non-members to attend in such
circumstances.
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Q. I am a LPF Finance Lead, we have set-up our Transitional
Steering Group for our LPF. How do I get money to run my
programme for the first quarter of 2010?
The focus will be on cost-effective and efficient ways of
supporting members as we move towards the demerger, many Branches
are now evolving towards a Local Practice Forum model. As you
know, Branches currently hold around £430k (as of November 2009)
and these funds will now need to start being targeted to where
there is LPF activity. Members have been working locally to
make this happen. In addition to these funds core funding will be
available for LPFs and details on how to apply for this will follow
in early 2010. If you are unsure about this please refer back to
the earlier FAQs, or talk to your LPF Facilitator. If any LPF
urgently requires funds please contact your LPF Facilitator:
Fareena Siddiqi will be looking after LPFs in Northern
England.
Tel: 07837721429. Email: fareena.siddiqi@rpsgb.org
Lianne Denton will be looking after LPFs located in the Midlands
and South West areas of England.
Tel: 07837721408. Email: lianne.denton@rpsgb.org
Martin Copland will be looking after the areas covering the
South East and East of England as well as the London region.
Tel: 07843339211. Email: martin.copland@rpsgb.org
Natalie Ryce will be looking after the five LPFs in
Scotland.
Tel: 0131 5564386. Email: natalie.ryce@rpsgb.org
Christine Horan will be leading and developing a network of
seven LPFs across Wales.
Tel: 029 20730315. Email: christine.horan@rpsgb.org
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Q. When
will members know the location of LPFs?
A. Most Branch committees/LPF Transitional teams are in the
process of agreeing the potential areas of the new LPF locations
and this work is nearly complete. The Board members in each
Country have worked closely with local members to achieve these
decisions. Many other important elements of work are reliant
on this allocation. In early 2010 we will provide a list of
proposed LPF locations, although at first some of these will be
virtual. There will, of course, be flexibility in where
members chose to belong to an LPF and this is a good starting
point. Members will have access to other LPFs and may choose to
belong to more than one (either by request or by invitation).
Members will also be able to physically attend other LPFs, where
the topics on offer interest them.
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Q. In the past we used to put Branch core funding
received from the Society away for a rainy day? We have been
prudent with our funds and don't really want to put them towards
the local LPF.
A. Many Branches are already discussing how best to support the
LPF in their location. Some Branches are choosing to stay as
a "locality" of an LPF and any money from the centre will be given
to the LPF to allocate as it sees fit to meet members local needs.
Some localities are continuing to put on a number of face-to-face
meetings where they meet the needs of members. Funding held
at Branch level that exceeds the amount required to fund this years
locality activity would be best used to support setting up the
LPF.
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Q. In the past our Branch would have applied for its funding
from January onwards, how will the practicalities of obtaining
funding for LPFs work for 2010?
A. Work is being undertaken internally to find the best way of
operating financial resources for LPFs, and information around
processes and banking arrangements will follow shortly.
This is very much a move towards decentralization; local
decisions made by local members. Branch committees, but in
particular treasurers and LPF finance leads are requested to find
flexible solutions to ensure that LPFs have the funding to support
members needs for the first quarter of 2010. The focus of a
successful professional leadership body will be to ensure good
value for members. As soon as an LPF Steering Group is
appointed, this will be recognised as the start of an active LPF
and Branches should work with the LPF to offer financial support
from this point in time.
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Q. What if our network finds that it does not have sufficient
funds to put on a meeting?
A. Where there are extenuating circumstances treasurers and
finance leads should contact Amanda King to discuss such
circumstances and these will be reviewed on a case by case basis.
Amanda will work with the Board leads in each country to make these
decisions. In the first instance please contact the LPF
Facilitator for your area. Further information about applying for
funding for LPFs will follow.
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Q. Who
will hold the budgets for LPFs going forward?
A. The National Pharmacy Boards will be responsible for the
overall distribution of the budget for LPFs in each country.
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Q. The Branch and Regional Secretaries' Handbook and the Branch
Treasurers Handbooks are feeling very out of date as we move
towards the development of LPFs, will a similar Handbook be written
for LPFs?
A. Yes, at the moment LPFs have had the benefit of the LPF
Toolkit, http://www.pharmacyplb.co.uk/professionalNetworking.aspx
to guide them in the early days of LPF activity, but as LPFs start
to deliver local services guidance will be written to support this
to ensure that members get a high level of support locally.
This will be included in further versions of the LPF
Toolkit.
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Q. Our local Branch currently receives adhesive address labels
for those members who have not given the Society their email
address. How will we contact members of the LPF going
forward?
A. After the demerger the Society will not be supplying these
address labels owing to its changing resources and priorities. LPF
leads will be able to access members emails through the new
electronic system giving them the opportunity to be able to
communicate with members locally. Members will be encouraged
to ensure that the Society holds an up-to-date emails and work is
being undertaken to capture as many emails as possible.
Currently LPF leads are using myRPSGB in the same way that
Branch Secretaries were able to access member emails.
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Q. My Branch is continuing to function and will want to have
access to headquarters' specialist speakers for the foreseeable
future - how will this be supported?
A. For the future, the dedicated LPF Facilitators will be
offering support to LPFs and Branches where they continue to
function will need to become more reliant on local support to put
together a programme of events, as agreed with their local
LPF. Branches will continue as localities of LPFs so in the
first instance all support from the Society will be directed to
LPFs. Branches and LPFs will work together collaboratively to
offer support and services from the Society. The new devolved
structure of the Society will mean that there is an expectation
that Board members will attend LPF activities to listen to members
and to share information.
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Virtual Networking and
LPFs
Q. When will the virtual networking facility be
tested?
A. Virtual groups went live from 1st February. Three
pilot LPFs have been testing the LPF aspects of virtual networking
facilities for both usability and functionality during
February. Once we have reviewed their findings, virtual
networks will be offered to all the remaining LPF groups from the
beginning of April.
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Q. What if a physical LPF is not set up in my area on the date
of demerger?
A. As the development of LPFs is being led locally by
members, it is recognised that LPFs will evolve at different
rates. Our aim is to provide around 50 LPF home pages (one
for each LPF across England, Scotland and Wales) ready to be
activated and visited by members interested in LPF activity.
All LPFs will have a home page whether they are active or not
(active being defined as - Transitional Steering Group in place,
non active - Transitional Steering Group not been set up
yet). The home pages will contain member driven information about
activity currently being undertaken by that LPF and will have links
to other pharmacy organisations, PCTs and CPPE/WCPPE/NES, for
example. There will also be information about CPD and
mentoring. If you would like to get involved in an LPF in
your area then please contact your Local Practice Forum
Facilitator:
Fareena Siddiqi will be looking after LPFs in Northern
England.
Tel: 07837721429. Email: fareena.siddiqi@rpsgb.org
Lianne Denton will be looking after LPFs in the Midlands and
South West areas of England.
Tel: 07837721408. Email: lianne.denton@rpsgb.org
Martin Copland will be looking after LPFs in the South East and
East of England and the London region.
Tel: 07843339211. Email: martin.copland@rpsgb.org
Natalie Ryce will be looking after LPFs in Scotland.
Tel: 0131 5564386. Email: natalie.ryce@rpsgb.org
Christine Horan will be looking after LPFs in Wales.
Tel: 029 20730315. Email: christine.horan@rpsgb.org
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Q. What
might appear on the home page of an LPF?
A. Information relating to pharmacy news items in that LPF
locality, up and coming events, on-line booking systems, calendar
of events, contact information, document sharing and storage --
where members can take part in, for example, consultations or
writing local protocols. We are also looking at ways of
linking into webinar events from your local LPF.
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Q. Will a group have similarities to Facebook so that I can
stay in touch with my colleagues, if yes, what are the added
benefits over other networking sites?
A. The concept is similar but the functionality will be
different and you will generally only have access to your
professional colleagues. In principle it operates in the same
way but the content will revolve around pharmacy related
topics. The main benefit is that you will be able to share
information, ideas, documents, advice and guidance on any pharmacy
related topic.
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Q. If I nominate myself to act as the IT Lead for my Local
Practice Forum, will the expectation be that I moderate the virtual
group of users or could this be done by another
person?
A. It would be great if the IT Lead wanted to moderate the group
and please feel free to encourage your colleagues to act as
moderators too. To enable this to work effectively, it would be
good if we could have all moderators up and running before the
demerger. We are currently working with the LPF Facilitators
and Pioneers to achieve this, and an advert has been included
within the Pharmaceutical Journal. If training is required
your LPF Facilitator will be able to help you. A Virtual
Networks Manager, based at Lambeth will also be available to ensure
that the services run smoothly and to help with any issues that may
arise locally.
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Q. If I decide to be a group moderator, how long should it take
each week?
A. It should only take a matter of minutes each week, and it
will be the exception that a moderator finds items of
concern. Moderators will be linked to other moderators so
they are not working alone and can share ideas and issues that may
arise.
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Q. I keep hearing about Webinars, what are they and how can I
take part in one?
A. Webinars have been proving extremely popular in the pilot
phase. As part of our new CPD offerings we have run a series
of CPD pilot webinars as a new learning tool giving members added
flexibility.
Members have been able to learn how to record their CPD using their
own PCs and view slide presentations and listen to the talks in
their chosen environment. The pilot covered academic,
industrial, community, hospital & PCT pharmacy specific
webinars and ran during November 2009 and January 2010. The
Head of Professional Development and Education, Dr Carol Evans was
able to take members through a PowerPoint presentation explaining,
step by step, how the CPD online recording system works. She also
showed them screen shots of the recording site, gave them practical
help and guidance and some top tips to make a CPD entry which would
fulfill the pharmacy regulator's requirements. This was followed by
a sector specific expert who presented two case studies in their
relevant fields and shared their personal experiences in making CPD
entries. The final phase of the CPD pilot webinar involved a
Q&A session where participants typed in their questions via the
Q&A box on their screens so that the panel members could answer
these verbally. The CPD panel consisted of the Head of
Professional Development and Education, the pharmacy sector expert
and the Society's CPD Support Specialist, Priya
Rasanayagam.
All the pilot webinars conducted so far are available for anyone to
access using the RPSGB webex site. You can view the
presentations while listening to the audio recording of the slides
by accessing the link:
https://rpsgb.webex.com/mw0306l/mywebex/default.do?siteurl=rpsgb
At the top right hand side of the web page you will see Event
Recordings and if you scroll down and select the CPD webinar of
your choice you can see the slide presentation and hear the audio
downloads.
Webinars have also been conducted in Pharmacy IT and Veterinary
medicines in community pharmacy and we will develop more topical
webinars in the future. To-date over 1,500 members have taken
part and the feedback has been very positive.
To register for future webinars visit our events webpage at www.rpsgb.org/events and
register online as per any other event. The webinar is an
online event and all you need to attend (once registered) is a
computer with web access to see the slides from presenters and
earphones or a phone to listen to it. You will be able to ask
questions to the panelists that could help you in your current job,
education or career path. The pilot webinars have been
attended by anything from 25 to over 300 delegates.
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Q.
Will there be tools to help me with my CPD recording?
A. Yes, there will be a suite of tools to help with your CPD
recording. These range from surgery events (either live at an LPF
or virtually using webinar technology); help and advice on our
website, including frequently asked questions and example CPD
records and case studies. We also have an information and
advice service if you wish to speak to someone in person about your
CPD query. In addition, there are practice specific CPD
webinars that you can download and listen to. Slides are
available to accompany these which will take you through the CPD
requirements, how to use the online CPD system and give you hints
and tips for CPD recording and examples of CPD records related to
that sector. We are also currently developing other services
to support CPD including events to help you continue to develop
professionally.
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Finance
Q. Will
LPF Leads receive payment for their role?
A. The Society recognises and values the efforts of those
volunteers willing to take on the role of LPF Lead and have decided
that honorary payments may be made. Honoraria are donations granted
'for a job well done' and these payments are entirely separate from
reimbursement of expenses. LPFs and their Transitional
Steering Groups can decide for themselves whether or not (and if so
how much) should be given to their LPF Leads as honoraria, bearing
in mind the need to keep within their overall allocated budget for
their LPF and the need to ensure best value for its members at all
times.
Each LPF should set a ceiling of £300 for this payment. It
will be normal practice to only allocate honoraria to the LPF
Lead.
Where appropriate, normal 'running' expenses such as train fares
may be reimbursed if the Transitional Steering Group deems it to be
in the best interest of members locally. These payments will be
funded from the allocated budget for each individual LPF.
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Q. Will LPF equipment be
insured?
A. The Society has group insurance policies to cover LPF
equipment. Branches are encouraged to donate any equipment
from the old Branch network e.g. laptops to the LPF for its
use. The LPF Treasurer should keep a record of all equipment
and share this record with their LPF Facilitator. Invoices
should be kept of any new equipment purchased and a copy of this
invoice should be sent to your LPF Facilitator.
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myRPSGB
Q. When I was a Branch Secretary I did not feel
confident that I always had access to up-to-date email addresses
for Branch members, even though I used these through
myRPSGB.
A. We've been doing quite a lot of activity recently to
encourage more members to give us their email address.
Recently the Membership and Marketing team wrote to all members
whose email address was invalid or who hadn't given us their email
address. We've had a great response and have added an additional
4,000 email addresses to the database. Moderators/ LPF Leads
of the new LPF virtual groups will be able to see who their members
are, and will be able to communicate with them using this new
system.
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Q. Will
myRPSGB continue to exist post demerger?
A. Since the launch of the new website, you may have
noticed that some areas of myRPSGB have now been closed down.
However, the e-pages relating to Branches and Branch Secretaries
remain live.
The myRPSGB site is no longer being used for collection of some
member data, so relevant pages carry redirects to the homepage of
the beta website beta.pharmacyplb.com where members are asked to
log in (though the myRPSGB site is still operating until demerger
for retention fee payment/ declaration/ receipts, collection of
data for the regulator, ethical dilemmas and library pages).
In practice this means that the myDetails area has been reduced so
that:
1. The myProfile page now only collects information about
memberships with other professional or regulatory bodies.
2. The myCommunications and myOccupation pages have been removed.
The myDetails page explains: An enhanced profile page is being
developed by the Society, where you can choose what communications
you would like to receive from the Society and where you can update
the details about which sector of pharmacy you work in. The
new page can be accessed by logging in here (link to http://beta.pharmacyplb.com/home/home.asp).
The Society will keep you up to date with further changes as
they come into effect but ultimately post demerger myRPSGB will no
longer exist as it will not be required with the new systems in
place. LPF Leads will be able to contact their members using
the new system.
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Branches
Q. As a committee we want to dissolve our Branch and start an
LPF? How do we go about this?
A. Branches wishing to dissolve and start an LPF might want to
consider raising this at an annual general meeting or committee
meeting as appropriate. Once the decision has been taken by those
present a note of this should be made for the record. The Branch or
Regional Secretary can obtain a form from their LPF Facilitator
(Branch/ Region Closure Form) which will assist them in recording
this information. This will also allow us to keep track of Branch
Closures.
In addition, Branch/Regional Secretaries may wish to produce a
brief annual report on the activities undertaken by the Branch
during the previous year as a matter of completeness but there is
no obligation on them to do so. If a report is completed it
should be sent to your Local Practice Forum Facilitator. Previously
Branches/Regions would also have been asked to fill in a B3/ R3
account income and expenditure statement. However, this will
not be required this year. As stated previously, any money
that has not been used for Branch/Region activity should be
transitioned into LPFs hence ensuring remaining funds are utilised
for the best use of members.
Previous FAQs covered the issue of Branch/Regional assets but if
you have any particular questions please speak to your LPF
Facilitator. As a general rule, please bear in mind the
overriding principle of getting the best use of members' assets for
the benefit of local members.
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Q. Our Branch has some money that it has held for many years
for a local charity for young pharmacists. The Branch has always
administered this and fund raised, could the LPF take over this
role? Many of these funds were set up in memory of
pharmacists and it would be nice to keep this benevolence
going.
A. LPFs and Branches are for the benefits of members locally and
it is perfectly reasonable that an LPF would want to continue with
this type of activity. The guiding principle for LPFs is that
they should be responsive to member needs locally. If your
Branch holds funds which were given for a particular purpose, and
you are not able to use them or return them, you might want to
consider:
• Passing on the activity to the Local Practice Forum
• Donating the money to a similar cause if appropriate
• If the Charity relates to students, for example, you may
wish to ask the School of Pharmacy to help administer this
If none of these options meet members' needs you may also wish
to seek advice from the Charity Commission (enquiries on 0845 300
0218) or to talk to the Society's Charities Officer (Catherine Hope
on 0207 572 2629).
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Q. Our Branch has some money that is has held as social funds.
The monies have been raised locally and members of the Branch would
like to hold an event to formally mark the end of the Branch and
the start of the LPF - is this appropriate?
A. It is a very nice gesture to do something symbolic to signal
the end of one era as we move towards the creation of the
new. Many Branches have done this in the form of
dinners or social events. It is also a nice way of thanking the
officers and paying tribute to the hard work of the
volunteers. If you take photographs of your event, please do
contact the PR team to see if they can get some media coverage from
such an event.
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Q. We have worked hard to raise funds locally and that is why
our bank accounts are so healthy. Is it fair that the money
should be transitioned to the LPF, when the LPF did not even exist
when we raised the money?
A. LPFs are being developed by members for members and this is
exactly the principle behind why the money would have been given to
the Branch in the first place.
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Q. I have lots of old paperwork going back many years relating
to the local Branch. This includes accounts, agendas, minutes
and copies of newsletters. What should I do with
them?
A. Branches have been very good at storing this information over
the years, and the advice has always been to store them in a local
records office as the Society currently does not have the storage
capacity for these materials.
Where materials are considered to be of historic value they
should be donated to the museum. Records that have been
identified as worthy of keeping can be offered on deposit to the
appropriate local record office for the area. The repository
for the town/city where the Branch/Regional administration is based
would be appropriate.
For your information please see previously issued guidance in
the Branch and Regional Handbook.
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Q. Is everyone who is normally communicated to about Branch
activity e.g. via email etc. automatically going to be contacted by
the new Transitional Steering Groups about LPFs or do we need to do
an initial poll to find out who wants to be involved and if people
don't why not?
A. Centrally we are continuing to communicate to both Branch
Secretaries and Local Practice Forum Leads. Please see previous
answer above about how Transitional Steering Groups will
communicate with the members of their LPF.
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Q. Our proposed LPF area has quite a lot of money spread across
the three or more Branches - how exactly do we start to use this
money?
A. Branches are asked to look for creative solutions to ensure
that this money best meets members' needs locally and until such a
time when LPFs set up individual bank accounts. This might
mean that Treasurers will be required to write cheques to pay for
LPF activities in a locality. For example, where a Branch is
transforming into an LPF and a meeting is held the Branch would
chose to pay for the refreshments and accommodation from existing
Branch funds. We are going through a period of great change and
your co-operation is appreciated.
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National Pharmacy Boards
Q. Will the new Pharmacy Boards be producing National
strategies? Will these be shared with LPFs?
A. Pharmacy Boards will be producing National strategies and
supporting initiatives, and these are the key documents to share
with LPFs.
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LPF
Facilitators
Q.Is
our LPF Facilitator also our LPF Administrator?
A. Your LPF Facilitator is there to aid the running of your
LPF. Their remit is a wide one ranging from attending LPF
meetings, encouraging key contacts to become involved and sharing
best practice. They also generate much of the documentation
that is required for a working LPF e.g. LPF toolkit. Although
the Facilitator is there to help you if you have any queries on
administrative issues e.g. when filling in your Budget Applications
they will not take responsibility for undertaking all of this work
as this is something that should obviously be determined and led by
the LPF, as they would have more detailed knowledge at hand to fill
in the application. In addition it would not be practical if
Facilitators did all of the administrative work as they look after
multiple LPFs, with the intention of utilising members' money in
the best possible way.
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Q.
Will the Facilitator be organising catering for our
meetings?
A. As above the Facilitators role is to aid the LPF Lead and
Transitional Steering Group but not to undertake the organisation
of every element of the meeting. The Facilitator may help in
the initial stages e.g. highlighting options for venues and
catering but it will be the responsibility of the LPF Lead and
Transitional Steering Group to organise and book catering for each
meeting if required.
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Q. Will the
Facilitator chair our meetings?
A. The LPF Facilitator will not chair LPF meetings. This falls
to the LPF Lead or appropriate members of the Transitional Steering
Group and members themselves. However, your Facilitator will
endeavour to help you with any requirements or queries you may
have.
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Q. Will the LPF Facilitator attend all our events - i.e. CPD
meetings?
A. Your LPF Facilitator will attend many of the LPF events,
especially in the early stages, when Transitional Steering Groups
are being established and plans are being agreed for forthcoming
activity. However, it makes sense for the Facilitators to
only attend when necessary for the benefit of the LPF and its
members. This ensures that every LPF in the area the
Facilitator covers will be able to have representation when
required.
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Q.
Will the LPF Facilitator take Minutes of our meeting?
A. This responsibility lies with a relevant person from the LPF
e.g. Secretary/ Deputy Lead. What the LPF Facilitator can do
for you is raise helpful points picked up from other LPFS or
provide advice. They will also take successful outcomes to put in
the RPSGB e-newsletter if appropriate.
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Q.
Will the LPF Facilitator manage our LPF homepage?
A. Again the LPF Facilitator is there to help and the best
use of their skills would be to train the IT Lead for the LPF (if
necessary) so the LPF can update their page whenever they
require.
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