The National Probation Service

NEWS LINE:

• The Rt Hon Jack Straw MP is the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
• The Rt Hon David Hanson MP is the current Minister of State for Probation and Prisons.

The National Probation Service is going through a transitionary period as individual Probation Areas elect to become Probation Trusts. The new status offers greater operating freedoms.

Leicestershire and Rutland was in the first wave of six Probation Areas that became trusts in April 2008. The other five trusts are Merseyside, West Mercia, Humberside, Dyfed Powys and South Wales.

In April 2008 the Ministry of Justice announced that the Government had allocated £40 million to the Probation Service so that sentencers can be confident that there are the resources to deliver effective community punishments.

Re-offending rates for offenders subject to community punishments are lower than those for prisoners who have served short-term prison sentences. The latest figures show that frequency of re-offending for community sentences is 59.7%. The re-offending rate following a community sentence is 37.9%.

Rt Hon David Hanson MP commented:

Prison works, but it’s not the answer for all offenders. For serious, violent and persistent offenders, a long period behind bars is without doubt the right course of action. But for those who might otherwise receive a short prison term the evidence is clear - a community sentence can be more effective in terms of turning them away from crime. And that’s what matters most.

The NAO report published on 31 January 2008 revealed that in addiction to punishment, community orders offer benefits to the community and offenders. It shows that 97.5% of community order requirements are completed.

Director of Probation Roger Hill said:

Probation is also addressing the educational, housing and health inequalities offenders suffer. We are ensuring offenders develop the skills they need to get back to work and contribute to society. This means we are working right across government, working through alliances and with our partners to deliver further reductions in re-offending.

There are changes taking place at the heart of the National Probation Service. Phil Wheatley, HM Prison Service Director General, explained that re-organisation is taking place through the development of the National Offender Management Service, which was initially created to ensure that the Prison Service and the Probation Service work more effectively together.He said:

The name of the game is to try and tie up community and custody together so that the new organisation allows prison and probation and our partners to work in a way that is much more co-operative and joined up, and out of that produces better production, better services - things that work better.

FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS

New projects include giving more say to members of the public concerning certain sentencing options.

Citizen Panels Work is underway between the Department of Communities and Local Government to further build on the benefits of the campaign called Community Payback. This campaign has successfully encouraged the public to nominate projects of work that supervised offenders could complete as part of their Unpaid Work order. One option being considered is to create Citizens Panels to decide on which Unpaid Work projects that offenders should undertake in their local area.

Community Justice Thirteen Community Justice Courts are now in operation, offering a faster approach to tackling crimes such as graffiti, petty theft, vandalism and anti-social behaviour, and helping to improve local quality of life.

This new approach involves extensive team work between the Courts, Police, Crown Prosecution Service and the Probation Service. Victims and Witnesses are kept informed and supported – and local people are consulted on the impact of crime in their neighbourhood.