Officers from South West Region, Wales and Gloucestershire recently attended a briefing at Bristol University on the new HE Negotiating Pack. The pack has been produced so that UCU lay officers are freed up to engage in local bargaining whilst having to hand clear guidance on National Policy. The packs were presented by Paul Bridge who developed the materials and Dominique Lauterburg (NEC member). Dominique will sit on the newly formed National Ratification Panel (NRP) which will consider where local negotiations impact on national policy. It is expected that the new resources and arrangements will considerably improve the speed and efficiency of negotiating at local level and allow lay officers to strike the best deals possible for their members.