Inspectors have given Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) an overall ‘Good’ rating. The CRC – which supervises low and medium risk offenders – is the first organisation of its kind to attain the second-highest grade.

HM Chief Inspector of Probation Dame Glenys Stacey said: “Hampshire and Isle of Wight CRC has the essentials in place to deliver a good probation service that supports people to move away from further offending and protects the public.

“It is laudable to see the CRC has evidence-based plans and is working with leading academics in the field to improve their work still further.”

Hampshire and Isle of Wight CRC is one of five probation services run by the Purple Futures consortium, which is led by Interserve. The CRC supervises nearly 4,000 low and medium-risk offenders; some are preparing to leave or have left prison, while others are serving community sentences.

Inspectors from HM Inspectorate of Probation found senior leaders were “skilled, knowledgeable and energetic” and the CRC’s management of information and facilities was “outstanding”.

The CRC’s work with people under supervision was of mixed quality. Initial work to assess individuals’ circumstances and to plan activity to improve these was judged to be good. Inspectors found the delivery and reviewing of planned work to be less effective.

Staff also need to improve their work to understand and manage the potential risk of harm to members of the public.

All CRCs supervise people to complete unpaid work in the community and deliver ‘Through the Gate’ services to support individuals leaving prison.

Inspectors found Hampshire and Isle of Wight CRC’s unpaid work scheme was well-established and of a very good standard. The experienced team arranged and supervised placements effectively and kept a firm focus on rehabilitation.

Through the Gate services require improvement to help individuals settle back into the community successfully. Inspectors noted more could be done to support individuals in 40 per cent of inspected cases. Too often, there was no record of work by staff in prison to help inmates prepare for release.

Inspectors added a note of caution following its inspection. The CRC has introduced sweeping changes to its staffing, including seconding almost a quarter of its probation officers to another organisation.

Efforts to recruit new members of staff at a lower grade have also proved difficult. It is likely that the new starters will not be fully in place until autumn 2019. In the meantime, probation staff are managing around 70 cases each.

Dame Glenys said: “The quality of its work is at risk, however, as the owners have decided to reduce the professionally qualified proportion of its workforce and there have been delays in recruiting new, less experienced staff. In my opinion, the CRC no longer has the quantity and calibre of staff to deliver an effective service.

“Regrettably, the ability of the CRC to sustain the quality of its work is being put at risk because of the financial pressures that this and other CRCs are experiencing.”

ENDS

 

Notes to editor

1. The report is available at justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation on Wednesday 08 May 00.01.
2. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth offending and probation services. The Inspectorate rates individual aspects of work and the overall performance using a four-point scale: Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement and Inadequate.
3. There are 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) across England and Wales
   responsible for supervising low and medium-risk offenders.
4. Purple Futures took formal ownership of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight CRC on 01 February 2015. The consortium is led by Interserve and includes: Interserve Justice (a subdivision of Interserve, a global support service and construction company); 3SC (a company managing public service contracts on behalf of third-sector organisations); P3 (People Potential Possibilities, a charity and social enterprise organisation) and Shelter (a charity focusing on homelessness and accommodation issues).
5. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in January 2019. At the time of inspection, the CRC supervised 3,930 individuals.
6. Probation services are usually delivered by probation officers (who have a higher education professional qualification and manage more complex cases) and probation services officers (they train on the job and complete a Level 3 Diploma in Probation Practice during their first 12 months). At Hampshire and Isle of Wight CRC, these roles are known as senior case managers and case managers respectively. For brevity, the use of the term “probation staff” in this press release covers staff at both grades.
7. For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications Catherine Chan on 07889 405930 or media@hmiprobation.gov.uk (E-mail address)