the role of the national probation service (3.1)

Philosophy and ethical principles

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What is the belief for offenders

The belief that offenders can change for the better and become responsible members of society

What is the belief for the individual

The belief in the worth and dignity of the individual

What is their commitment towards

A commitment to social justice, social inclusion, equality and diversity

Aims and objectives

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How does the national probation service describe itself

The NPS describes itself as a ‘statutory criminal justice service that supervises high-risk offenders released into the community and provides statutory support to victims of serious sexual or violent crime’

What is it’s priority

It’s priority is to protect the public by Rehabilitating offenders, by tackling the causes of their offending and enabling them to turn their lives around

What is the type of client of offenders serving a sentence in the community

Offenders serving a sentence in the community, rather than in prison, as the result of a Community Order by the court.

What might this involve

•up to 300 hours unpaid work (community payback)

•an exclusion order or curfew or residency requirement

•a group programme

What are offenders who have been released on licence from prison

Offenders who have been released on licence from prison before the end of their sentence. For example, prisoners serving 12 months or more are normally released on licence halfway through their sentence.

What does the licence have

The license has requirements attached (undergoing drug treatment) and is supervised by the probation service

What partnerships are connected to the NPS

Courts, police, local councils, and partners in the private and voluntary sectors.

Funding

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What is the NPS overall budget in 2018

The national probation service is part of HM Prison and Probation Service, which in 2018 had an overall budget of £4.6billion, shared between prisons and probation

How is this budget provided

This budget is provided by the government and comes form general taxation

What community rehabilitation companies

The community rehabilitation companies were private businesses that had a contract with the Ministry of Justice to provide probabtion services

How were they paid

They were paid for meeting rehabilitation targets agreed in their contracts.

What was missed

However, 19 of the 21 CRCs missed their targets for reducing re-offending and some were even supervising their offenders remotely by telephone.

What did the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee find

House of Commons Public Accounts Committee concluded that up to £342 million had been spent on CRCs without clear benefits and by 2020 the Ministry of Justice had spent over £500m more than expected on the CRCs

What was the result of this

As a result, the government decided to end all private sector contracts for probation work in 2020 and to recognise the service on a regional basis. From 2022 it will be organised into 12 regions

Working practices

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What are Types of criminality and offender

At any one time, around 250,000 offenders are on probation. These offenders are deemed safe enough to serve their sentnece in the community

National and local reach

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How do the NPS serve the country

Working to the same standards throughout the country, but delivering the service regionally and locally

What do they prepare

Preparing pre-sentence reports for the courts, to help them select the most appropriate sentence for the individual offender

What do they manage

Managing approved premises for offenders whose sentence includes a residence requirement

What do they assess

Assessing prisoners to prepare them for their release on licence back into the community. At that point they come under NPS supervision

What do they help

Helping offenders serving sentences includes the community to meet the requirements ordered by the courts

How do they handle wellbeing

When an offender receives a prison sentence of 12 months or more for a serious violent or sexual crime, or is detained as a mental health patrint, the NPS communicates with and prioritises the wellbeing of the offenders victims