Annual Delegates Conference 2024: Your priorities take centre stage
Each year the SoR invites around 300 delegates to an essential gathering to help steer the direction of the Society for the future. Here Synergy reports from a lively 2024 Annual Delegates Conference
Staff welfare, sustainability and diversity were among the priorities at the Society of Radiographers Annual Delegates Conference 2024.
Taking place at the Queens Hotel in Leeds from 15-17 April, the SoR’s Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) gives members the opportunity to steer the direction of the Society in the coming years.
Over Tuesday 16 April and Wednesday 17 April, delegates were given the opportunity to debate and vote on more than 60 motions, on topics ranging from protection of radiographers in the workplace, to promotion of radiography to the wider world and ways to improve diversity and inclusion within the profession.
Delegates were given the opportunity to table motions ahead of the meeting and attendees could then debate and vote on each proposal.
Each motion that was carried can now be taken to the SoR’s UK Council to be actioned in future.
See below for the full list of motions and their outcomes.
Dave Pilborough, SoR President, said: “This event shapes the policy of the Society going forwards. We are a membership organisation at our heart.
“It’s important to our wider membership that they are represented by their delegates and that their opinions are taken into account.”
Staff welfare, sustainability and diversity were among the priorities at the Society of Radiographers Annual Delegates Conference 2024.
Taking place at the Queens Hotel in Leeds from 15-17 April, the SoR’s Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) gives members the opportunity to steer the direction of the Society in the coming years.
Over Tuesday 16 Apri and Wednesday 17 April, delegates were given the opportunity to debate and vote on more than 60 motions, on topics ranging from protection of radiographers in the workplace, to promotion of radiography to the wider world and ways to improve diversity and inclusion within the profession.
Delegates were given the opportunity to table motions ahead of the meeting and attendees could then debate and vote on each proposal.
Each motion that was carried can now be taken to the SoR’s UK Council to be actioned in future.
Dave Pilborough, SoR President, said: “This event shapes the policy of the Society going forwards. We are a membership organisation at our heart.
“It’s important to our wider membership that they are represented by their delegates and that their opinions are taken into account.”
Kickstarting the morning
Starting at 9.30am on Tuesday, the meeting was opened by chair Katie Thompson, followed by an address from SoR president Dave Pilborough.
After updates on SoR’s member engagement, the meeting then moved to motions.
In the morning session, a total of 28 motions were heard.
The opening motion was tabled by delegates from the Scotland region, and related to a recent 2016 survey on bullying during student work placements.
There was also a debate around whether SoR membership should be free for students.
Discussion on this topic covered the strain students face due to the cost of living crisis and how research from other organisations had shown that free membership actually decreased student engagement. The motion was not carried, following a vote of 105 votes for and 117 votes against.
On diversity, a motion tabled by delegates from the SoR’s Equalise group called on the SoR to conduct research to identify barriers for black and ethnic minority members in radiography, and to implement training programmes for industrial relations reps to help them identify racist behaviour. This motion was carried.
Kickstarting the morning
Starting at 9.30am on Tuesday, the meeting was opened by chair Katie Thompson, followed by an address from SoR president Dave Pilborough.
After updates on SoR’s member engagement, the meeting then moved to motions.
In the morning session, a total of 28 motions were heard.
The opening motion was tabled by delegates from the Scotland region, and related to a recent 2016 survey on bullying during student work placements.
There was also a debate around whether SoR membership should be free for students.
Discussion on this topic covered the strain students face due to the cost of living crisis and how research from other organisations had shown that free membership actually decreased student engagement. The motion was not carried, following a vote of 105 votes for and 117 votes against.
On diversity, a motion tabled by delegates from the SoR’s Equalise group called on the SoR to conduct research to identify barriers for black and ethnic minority members in radiography, and to implement training programmes for industrial relations reps to help them identify racist behaviour. This motion was carried.
Afternoon session
Following lunch, proceedings continued with a session on AI from Dr Tracy O’Regan, the SoR’s professional officer for clinical imaging and research, and Huw Shurmer, strategic and government relations manager for Fujifilm Healthcare UK.
The conference then returned to the motions, starting with a call for protected Continuing Professional Development time and budget, which was unanimously supported by the delegates.
Also in the afternoon, the conference debated a motion calling for NHS workers to be given access to NHS dental appointments. Opponents of this motion argued that NHS workers should not be placed ahead of vulnerable and low income people who also need access to NHS dental care. The motion was not carried.
Later in the day, motions turned to topics including the promotion of DXA scanning in helping to diagnose osteoporosis, and discussions around VAT on bras.
A successful first day
The final section of the day was dedicated to SoR policy, including a proposed review of assistant practitioner (AP) scope of practice. The motion, which called on the UK Council to survey and investigate current AP practice and share good examples to leverage further expansion of the role, was carried.
Dave Pilborough said: “It’s been a great day and it’s great to see opposition [to motions] because that promotes live debate. It’s great that people want to discuss things and have a passion to talk about their experiences in work.”
Katie Thompson, SoR vice president and chair of the day’s proceedings, said: “I thought the calibre of speeches was really good and I thought there was great engagement from all members.
“I love it when you get a few supporters and some opposition - it makes it really interesting for those that are watching it.
“Everyone is so welcoming regardless of the motion, so I think it’s been a really successful first day of conference.”
A successful first day
The final section of the day was dedicated to SoR policy, including a proposed review of assistant practitioner (AP) scope of practice. The motion, which called on the UK Council to survey and investigate current AP practice and share good examples to leverage further expansion of the role, was carried.
Dave added: “It’s been a great day and it’s great to see opposition [to motions] because that promotes live debate. It’s great that people want to discuss things and have a passion to talk about their experiences in work.”
Katie Thompson, SoR vice president and chair of the day’s proceedings, said: “I thought the calibre of speeches was really good and I thought there was great engagement from all members.
“I love it when you get a few supporters and some opposition - it makes it really interesting for those that are watching it.
“Everyone is so welcoming regardless of the motion, so I think it’s been a really successful first day of conference.”
Radiography roles and regional support
Lively debate continued on Wednesday morning, as a further 17 motions were tabled following the 48 motions discussed the previous day.
Day two of the conference opened with two proposed rule changes for the procedures of ADC, both raised by the SoR’s Equalise group.
Currently Equalise, the SoR’s equality and diversity network, is able to attend ADC, submit motions and speak for or against other motions, but it cannot formally second motions to allow them to be discussed at the conference.
James Barber, delegate lead for the Equalise group, argued for increased rights for the network at ADC that would allow it to formally second motions, but that would fall short of establishing Equalise as a full delegation.
This was put to a card vote among the delegation, with a two-thirds majority needed to action a rule change. Both proposed rule changes from Equalise failed to garner enough votes to be approved.
Proceedings then returned to the remaining motions, starting with a call from the North West delegation to support the ongoing use of advanced and consultant practitioner titles. This motion was carried.
Radiography roles and regional support
Lively debate continued on Wednesday morning, as a further 17 motions were tabled following the 48 motions discussed the previous day.
Day two of the conference opened with two proposed rule changes for the procedures of ADC, both raised by the SoR’s Equalise group.
Currently Equalise, the SoR’s equality and diversity network, is able to attend ADC, submit motions and speak for or against other motions, but it cannot formally second motions to allow them to be discussed at the conference.
James Barber, delegate lead for the Equalise group, argued for increased rights for the network at ADC that would allow it to formally second motions, but that would fall short of establishing Equalise as a full delegation.
This was put to a card vote among the delegation, with a two-thirds majority needed to action a rule change. Both proposed rule changes from Equalise failed to garner enough votes to be approved.
Proceedings then returned to the remaining motions, starting with a call from the North West delegation to support the ongoing use of advanced and consultant practitioner titles. This motion was supported.
There then followed a lively debate on motion 53, again raised by the North West delegation, this time calling on Council to review its provision of regional officers with a focus on equality of service for its members.
Opponents of this motion argued that the SoR should be able to decide how to allocate its resources to best support its members in each region, while supporters wanted the allocation of regional officers to be reviewed but accepted that the final decision should sit with the SoR. This motion was not carried.
Celebration of the Rep of the Year award was also on the agenda, as the South East delegation tabled a motion calling for this award to be moved from the SoR’s Radiography Awards and instead held during ADC. After an initial hand count, a card vote was then held and this motion was carried.
A motion calling for the UK Council to make College of Radiographers approval of pre-registration undergraduate radiography courses mandatory was not carried. The CoR has noted it is unable to mandate this as a requirement, but said it works closely with education providers to encourage them to seek approval of all registration programmes across the UK.
Similarly, a motion calling on the UK Council to lobby for HCPC radiographer registration fees to be paid for by employers was not supported by delegates.
Other motions tabled on the final day included discussion around the use of imaging to age migrants by the Home Office and a call to switch off equipment when not in use to help save energy.
After the motions concluded, proceedings then moved to a number of elections, including of observers to UK council, before closing speeches from the chair of ADC Katie Thompson and finally SoR President Dave Pilborough.
The motions
(click to enlarge)
More about ADC
The Annual Delegates Conference (ADC) provides members with the unique opportunity to help shape the strategic direction of the Society, and wider profession.
Bringing together up to 300 members, including regional representatives, regional and national officers and UK Council, ADC deals with current issues within the radiography profession, or matters of personal importance to members.
Each region and country can propose motions and send a delegation to the conference. Motions can be about any topic, and the ones selected for ADC by the Delegate Conference Committee (DCC), will then be debated and voted on by those at the conference.
If a motion is carried, it will then be taken to UK Council to be actioned.
Find out more about ADC 2024 here.
You can all view the full video recap of ADC 2024 here.
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