Indeed. I really can't thank you all enough. Every reply made my day. I hope that I'm able to help others someday as you've all helped me.

Thanks ever so much BazzaS, things are a lot clearer now. Cheers DJ67

I totally see your point. She's the one that is unhappy about the change in contract. She is currently paid 5p above minimum wage and if she signs and therefore handcuffs herself to what could be up to 10 weeks then she couldn't realistically go for any positions outside the company that have better pay/conditions. She doesn't want to change jobs at present but being close to retirement and with living costs outstripping wages if an opportunity for a better standard of living arose then it's something that she would have to consider. Getting back to the initial point though, are the company legally allowed to enforce the change in contract and sack anyone who refuses to sign it or are they acting contrary to employment law?

The point being that 28 consecutive days is a lot shorter than 20 working days when there is a period of 6 weeks between working days due to employment being term time. I agree that finding alternative employment would be a good resolution but should a 61 year old woman who has built up a good relationship with colleagues, parents and children have to start again in a new job? If she signs and then decides to change employment in the future, she may struggle to find an employer who will wait over 2 months before she can start.

Thanks for the great replies folks. Until recently all the threats had been verbal but they have now been put in a letter. Many members have staff have been frightened into signing the new contracts but a few are holding out. Nobody is opposed to giving four weeks notice but it's the "four working weeks notice" that is the issue. I've not been able to open the Unison link on my phone but will have a look on my laptop when I get home. Once more, thanks for your responses

Hi, My mother in law works at an after school link club and management have told staff that they are changing their employment contracts so that the staff must give 4 working weeks notice if they wish to leave. The problem is that the jobs are term time only and so if an employee decides in July that they wish to leave, they cannot actually leave until October. The workers have also been told that anyone who leaves without working the required period of notice will be taken to court for breach of contract. A few members of the team have said that they don't agree to the changes and have declined to sign the revised contracts. The company has now said that anyone who refuses to sign the new contract will be dismissed. My mother in law has now received a letter giving her her notice unless she signs the new contract. Is this legal and how best should she approach this situation? Any help would be most gratefully received. DJ67

Hi Michael, Thanks for looking and getting back to me so quickly. Cheers DJ67

Hi, I've just checked google street view to see the signage and there is one sign on a post that is about halfway down the street, away from the corner near where my girlfriend parked. No wonder she didn't spot it. She parked in Radnor Street, Warrington (WA5 1QN) outside the Grafton Street Cafe. Could someone please take a look and see if she is still banged to rights. I thought it was a fair cop at first but now I think it's not so cut and dried. Many thanks in advance.

Many thanks for the replies. I figured that it would be watertight and she did break the rules, even if not deliberate. We'll try a begging letter but are resigned to paying up.

Hi, I've been helped several times with private land parking issues but this is my first time with Local Authority Parking problems. My girlfriend had an appointment at Warrington Hospital and parked in a nearby street. When she returned to her car she had a PCN stuck to the windscreen because she had parked in a resident permit holders only street. She only noticed the signs upon return. Is this just a case of paying up and being more careful in future or is there any way of fighting this, considering that she did do what they are saying she did? Any help/advice would be gratefully received. Cheers DJ67

Common sense doesn't really come into it. From my experience , I suggest that you follow the advice of Ericsbrother to the letter and that will take the stress out of things. You're in great hands with the people on this forum so hang in there and listen to the experts.

Hi, sorry about the delay in responding. So glad that you both got sorted and it must have been hell to suffer for 8 years. She was put on gabapentin and had really bad side effects so is now on lyrica. Not too sure how effective the lyrica is at the moment as she is still in constant pain. I agree with you on the Bradford Scale and once she has seen a specialist on Friday (19th) she'll see about meeting with HR. Thanks so much for all your advice and support. You folks are amazing.

Thanks so much for your kind words and advice Sidewinder. It's really appreciated.

My wife works for a local government authority in November she developed a problem that the doctor diagnoses as sciatica. In general this is expected to improve after about six weeks but after two months there was no improvement and my wife was in agony. However, she still went to work despite the pain. Her GP sent her for an MRI scan and it showed that she had a slipped disc. She was prescribed medication and extremely strong pain killers - tramadol - which still didn't resolve the pain and merely zonked her out. Eventually, she couldn't continue to go to work and two weeks ago she reluctantly accepted a sick note from her GP. Not only is the slipped disc getting her down but she feels she's letting her colleagues down. She has now got an appointment to see a specialist and has been informed that she may need injections and possibly surgery. I've seen her crying with pain and her mental health is definitely suffering. Another concern is that her employer uses the Bradford Scale when dealing with absences and she is concerned that she will face a warning for her sickness when she eventually returns to work. I've tried to reassure her but she is such a conscientious person that she can't help worrying. Any advice on how she should proceed if she is faced with a disciplinary when she is finally able to return to work? Many thanks in advance. DJ67

The DCA is called UCS, which is short for Ultimate Customer Solutions,. I've dealt with this company before in regards to a PCN that was issued when I hadn't displayed my permit and they are so useless that I'm surprised that they are still in business. I reckon their dress code includes a spinning bow tie and a flower that squirts water. I'll ignore them, then Gladstone's will get in touch. I'll write to Gladstone's, pointing out the flaws in their extortion attempt and they'll pass it back across the desk to UCS. UCS will send me one last threatening letter, telling me that I'm to blame for my appeal not being dealt with by PCN (NW) Ltd and demanding a reduced amount of cash. Then, when I tell them to take me to court or else stop harassing me they will crawl back under their rock. Like most people, PCNs used to scare me but because of the fantastic advice on here I now see them for what they usually are... A waste of paper.