Campaign Update
The final stage of the Panel Deputies sift is now underway and all applicants will be informed of the outcome of their application in mid February.
The OPG would like to thank everyone who applied. The response was very high (more than ten applications for every place on the new Panel) and the overall standard was extremely good. To ensure the sift is being conducted correctly, and will produce a robust result in line with the aims of the OPG, the sift has taken place in three stages and is being subject to outside scrutiny from the Law Society and an independent Visitor.
The final selection will be based on the skills mix needed, the geographical spread of Deputies, and the quality of the application. If an applicant is not appointed it will not necessarily be a reflection of their deputyship work to date but an inevitable consequence of cutting down the size of the Panel. The campaign will not affect current Panel members' cases.
Why OPG is renewing the Panel
The OPG is renewing the panel in light of the review conducted in 2009 to 2010. The key findings of the review were:
- The Panel was disproportionately large compared to the number of last resort cases. This had resulted in many Panel members not being referred a case for several years. The new Panel will be less than half the size currently, with only 60 members. This should mean members get a more steady stream of referrals.
- The biggest issue the review found affecting clients and the Court was that Panel members were too willing to reject difficult referrals in favour of more straightforward, low-maintainance cases. This can lead to delays in appointing a Deputy, as time is spent referring each case to a succession of unwilling panel members, leaving clients vulnerable for longer. With this in mind OPG has redrafted the Service Level Agreement to reflect the fact that the Panel, by its very nature, exists to serve clients who are often in difficult circumstances and have low assets.
- The skills profiles used by the Court to select the most appropriate Deputy have been refreshed to bring them into line with the current legislative and cultural environment.
- The review also recognised the need for a closer and more transparent relationship between the OPG and the Panel. To this end there will be resources dedicated to closer support and supervision of Panel members than existed previously.
Less than 5% of applications for the new panel were from outside of the legal profession. The OPG will be running a small scale 'Call for Evidence' with the third sector as the OPG is still interested in exploring the scope for broadening the range of organisations who undertake this work and to understand the associated costs.