Organising and campaigning on workplace issues

What is organising?

The Trade Union Congress defines organising as:

• Building a union that draws its strength not just from the number of members that it has but also from the number of reps and activists
• Campaigning on the values and issues that members and potential members care about and involving them in campaign activity
• Reflecting the diversity of the workers the union supports and represents in the profile of its members, reps and activists.

Meet the CSP organising team

The organising team exists to help facilitate communication and coordinated action between members, stewards, safety reps, equality reps and CSP staff.

We work to ensure that all members have what they need to make their workplaces safe and enjoyable places to work. 

Each team member looks after several regions and travels across these regions and meets with staff and reps to help understand local challenges and how we can come together to meet those challenges head-on through workplace action and celebrating best practice.  

We are a small team of five within the ERUS (employee relations and union services) directorate of the CSP.

Alice Spilsbury (Wales, South West England and West Midlands)

I am a physiotherapist by background and have previously been a CSP steward. I am currently based in South Wales.  

I am a firm believer that happy staff equals happy patients, so I am very passionate about improving the workplace experiences of CSP members by empowering them to start their activist journey. 

I am keen to visit more local workplaces in my patches and chat with members. Get in contact via email if you'd like to discuss a visit!

• Contact Alice at spilsburya@csp.org.uk
• Read Alice's reflections on our work in 2024

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Daisy Goodall (North East England, East of England and South East Coast)

I have worked for the CSP since 2021. Most recently, I was leading on our student engagement and university visits. I appreciated hearing from students about their diverse reasons for choosing to study Physiotherapy. I am proud to have played a role in relaunching our CSP student rep network. I’m really looking forward to building and empowering workplace teams. 

My background is in local campaigning. I’ve seen how the power of collective action can transform services for local people. I was drawn to the CSP because I value the work of physiotherapists and support workers in enhancing quality of life. 

I would like to meet with members to get a real understanding of the issues staff are facing. Please get in touch to arrange a visit at your workplace.

• Contact Daisy at goodalld@csp.org.uk

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Davy Nichol (Northern Ireland, North West England, Isle of Man and Yorkshire)

I am relatively new to the CSP, taking up my post in November 2023. I joined the CSP following a career in the fire service.  20 years of this career was spent as a senior official of the Fire Brigades Union. 

I admire and appreciate the work carried out by physiotherapists and support staff and I am proud to work for the CSP and to promote our values whilst assisting members and reps in my role as a trade union organiser. 

I am based in Northern Ireland and am keen to engage members and reps across my regions both in person and online.  

• Contact Davy at nichold@csp.org.uk

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Jack Holroyde (London, South Central and East Midlands)

I am a physiotherapist by background (MSK/pain) and was a steward at a trust for several years before coming to work at the CSP in March 2024. 

I am passionate about equity, diversity and belonging and have spent much of my career working with and advocating for people from minority groups, including more recently with internationally educated physios. 

I cover London, the South and the East Midlands – if you’re in those areas and you’d to catch up or would like me to come to your workplace then do get in touch.

• Contact Jack at holroydej@csp.org.uk

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Nina Strathie (Scotland)

I have worked for the CSP since 2016, and spent several years in a role which, in part, supported organising in Scotland.

Becoming a trade union organiser felt like the natural next step for me, since supporting in recruitment and campaigning, along with working with our members and reps, was the element of the role I found most rewarding.

Prior to joining the CSP I worked in events management – organising may seem quite a change of direction but the two roles share many key skills.

I feel my own personal values align with those of the CSP and am proud to work for an organisation which does so much good, not only for our members, but for patients and the wider public.  

I am based in Edinburgh and happy to travel anywhere in Scotland to meet members and reps in their places of work.

• Contact Nina at strathien@csp.org.uk

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Organising clinics

Every month, all members, stewards and managers are invited to join our organising clinics to learn about key workplace issues and how we can organise to overcome these challenges.

We meet virtually on the third Thursday of the month from 12pm-1pm.

Our next clinic is Student to Workplace Rep - Securing the Future of Our Union on 21 November.

Thanks to unions we have weekends, holiday pay, paid sick leave and progress on equalities issues. However, the overall rate of union membership is much lower than it was 40 years ago. How can we secure the future of our union? 

Unions need to actively engage with young workers and give them opportunities to get ahead at work. Less than 1 in 20 union members are aged between 16 and 24 and over half of union reps are 50 and over. Our movement needs to grow if we are to continue to be one that can change the world of work.  

This organising clinic is aimed at students and student reps, workplace reps, members, managers and university staff. We will be discussing the opportunities arising from our relaunched student reps network, and other tips to help secure the future of the union movement. Students will find out why joining a union is the best way to get ahead at work, and members will learn how to make use of interactions with students and new graduates to help with rep recruitment.  

• Sign up for the organising clinic on Teams

How trade unions operate within the NHS

Josh Meadows, regional steward and Rep of the Year 2022, answers these questions in a short film courtesy of Northamptonshire NHS Trust.

Arrangements vary slightly from trust to health board but this will give you a broad outline of the work done by our stewards and safety reps.

Top tips to get started with organising

• Contact your organiser or senior negotiating officer and let them know you want to help!
• Start training today with the eBites for stewards and safety reps in our virtual learning environment.
• Introduce yourself and stay in touch with members using the reps email facility.
• Set up a WhatsApp group for your stewards/safety reps.
• Print free, personalised posters and flyers with the CSP Print on Demand service.
• Get advice on how to recruit stewards and safety reps in our recruitment hub.
• Find out more in our resources for stewards.
• And don’t forget to tell us about your workplace wins, however small.

Become a workplace rep

Being more involved with the CSP can help you to develop professionally and personally, and we would encourage all members to consider becoming a CSP steward, safety rep or equality rep

Does your workplace need a CSP steward, safety rep or equality rep? Email the team to let us know.

In this short video CSP organiser Alice Spilsbury talks about the three rep roles – steward, safety rep and equality rep:

National campaigning

The CSP isn't just a trade union. As the professional body for physiotherapy, the CSP has a role in influencing the direction of the profession and tackling issues that affect all of physiotherapy.

• CSP campaigns and influencing
• Loss of physiotherapy or rehab space
• Rehabilitation, community rehab and recovery
• Calling out microaggressions