Probation
NOMS (National Offender Management Service) - The National Probation Service
In January 2004, the Home Secretary announced the creation of a new single National Offender Management Service, which will build on the achievements of the Prison Service and the National Probation Service. The new service will provide end-to-end management of adult offenders - whether they are serving their sentence in prison or the community - and have the responsibility for both punishing offenders and reducing re-offending.
The National Probation Service identifies its aims as:
- Protecting the public
- Reducing re-offending
- The proper punishment of offenders in the community
- Ensuring offenders' awareness of the effects of crime on victims and the general public
- The rehabilitation of offenders
The National Probation Service is an organisation that supervises offenders in the community. It works with them to try and establish why they offended, and then addresses those issues to reduce the chances of them offending again. In many cases this will involve an offender having to attend a specific offence-based programme, the attendance of which is a legal requirement of their sentence. The service also assists offenders in accessing employment, training and education opportunities, which in turn can help them become better skilled, more employable and less likely to resort to crime. This helps minimise the risk to the public. 60%-70% of all offenders struggle with some aspects of literacy and numeracy. All offenders are now required to attend a basic skills assessment, and are offered basic skills classes where there is a need.
The National Probation Service Merseyside Area employs around 750 staff in over 30 locations, and serves a population of around 1.5 million people. With an annual budget of £20m, they have staff in each of the six Magistrates' Courts and in Liverpool Crown Court. The Service runs three probation/bail hostels and has probation teams in both Liverpool and Altcourse prisons.
In one year alone the Merseyside Probation Area will supervise or deal with:
- 5,000 Community Rehabilitation Orders
- 3,000 Community Punishment Orders
- 1,200 Community Punishment and Rehabilitation Orders
- 2,400 Parole Licences following release from prison
- 3,000 Prisoners awaiting release
- 600 Victims, via their Victim Information Service
- The writing of 7,000 court reports
Merseyside Probation Area works closely with Merseyside Police and in partnership with around 50 different individuals and agencies. These provide expertise in employment services, substance misuse, victim support etc.
The Service is required to assess all supervised individuals on the basis of the risk they pose to the public, their chances of re-offending and their motivation to change. This is reviewed at regular intervals. An offender is required to abide by the requirements of an Order imposed on them as stipulated by the court. Any breach of these will result in prosecution and a return to court for re-sentence.
There are three main types of community sentence:
1) A Community Rehabilitation Order (CRO), (until recently known as a Probation Order).
2) A Community Punishment Order (CPO), (until recently known as a Community Service Order).
3) A Community Punishment and Rehabilitation Order (a combination of 1 and 2).
A CRO is a sentence passed by the court which can last from six months to three years. The supervision of the offender is managed by a designated probation officer who is responsible for the planning, co-ordination and delivery of the supervision programme. This includes getting offenders to confront their offending behaviour, motivating them to change and accept responsibility for their actions, and encouraging discipline and an awareness of the impact of their actions on others. It is a probation officer's job to ensure that the supervision programme is demanding and effective, and that the offender complies with all aspects of it.
A CPO is a sentence passed by the court which requires offenders to perform demanding, unpaid work for the benefit of the community of 40 to 240 hours duration. A designated community service officer will supervise the offender throughout the Order which will require him/her to adhere to disciplined requirements while undertaking socially useful work. Many offenders acquire new skills while on a CPO, thereby increasing their employability once the Order is complete.
The Probation Service also supervises offenders who are released early from prison on parole, and works with offenders during their prison sentence.
From April 2005 the above sentences will disappear, to be replaced by a single generic community sentence. This will give sentencers the opportunity to impose a number of requirements to a Community Order (chosen from a standard list), thereby customising the sentence to better suit the needs of each individual case.
Further information about the National Probation Service Merseyside.
This information has been provided by the External Relations Unit of the National Probation Service Merseyside