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A Best Practice Event, supported by Leicestershire and Rutland Probation Trust
Date and time: 9.45am - 4.30pm Wednesday, 28th September 2011
Venue: Peepul Centre, Orchardson Avenue. Leicester. LE4 - 6DP.
A national event to highlight best working practice when dealing with drug misusing offenders is being staged in Leicester and co-hosted by Probation’s Criminal Justice Drugs Team and members of their peer mentoring programme.
Delegates from other Probation Trusts, drug treatment agencies and Third Sector organisations from around the country are attending the event on Wednesday, which aims to promote the best practice that has developed through the delivery of the Drug Rehabilitation Requirement.
Magistrates and Judges can impose the Drug Rehabilitation Requirement (DRR) as part of a community order. The DRR often runs from six to 12 months and provides for structured supervision and interventions that will enable the offender to develop a stable lifestyle and become drug-free.
The local Criminal Justice Drugs Team (CJDT) has pioneered new ways of engaging with men and women on a DRR that further promotes their rehabilitation and reintegration into local communities.
Senior Probation Officer Liz Chadwick, based with CJDT, said: “Our approach in Leicester has been to add extra value to our supervision and work with drug offenders by encouraging their engagement with our peer mentoring training and, more recently, with our Work Ready Group.
“Research shows that getting paid employment reduces the risk of re-offending and promotes reintegration back into communities and family life.”
PEER MENTORS
The CJDT has developed a training programme for men and women, who want to work as volunteer peer mentors with other service users dealing with substance abuse problems. After completing the training, and under the direction of Probation staff, a peer mentor will help develop group discussions and individual offender engagement.
WORK READY PROGRAMME
The 12 week programme has been developed to boost the job hunting skills of unemployed offenders on supervision with the Leicestershire and Rutland Probation Trust – and uniquely offers voluntary work experience that can be included on a participant’s CV.
The Work Ready Group has completed three packages of training and 75% of service users have found full or part-time employment, enrolled in training courses or gone on to further volunteering opportunities.
Liz Chadwick explained: “We have just begun our fourth new group and at the start we ask each participant to sigh a contract that spells out what their commitment is going to be. During the weeks we build up their self confidence by teaching basic interview techniques, what is the most appropriate way to disclosure their former offending and we develop their working skills.
“We have contacted a number of local charities and churches, whose members provide the materials and our supervised volunteers carry out the work involved. This is not Community Payback, which is ordered by the courts. The Work Ready Group is made up of individuals who are providing their labour for free to gain the experience - and hopefully impress a local employer of their commitment to find a job and put their past behaviour behind them.
The LCDT will be staging two workshops at the Best Practice Event for delegates interested in the development of peer mentoring and employment support.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is currently developing a number of exciting and inspiring best practice projects which have one or more of the following aims:
- The involvement of service users in the delivery of Drug Rehabilitation Requirement (DRR)
- The development of new or improved opportunities for drug abstinence and recovery for offenders on a DRR
- The integration of qualifications and skills development into DRR treatment provision.
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