A probation service in the north of England has made steady progress over the last year, according to inspectors.

HM Inspectorate of Probation visited Northumbria Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) last September. The CRC works with more than 3,700 medium and low-risk offenders who are preparing to leave or who have left prison, or who are serving community sentences.

Inspectors looked at 10 aspects of the CRC’s work and have given an overall rating of ‘Requires improvement’.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said: “We returned to Northumbria CRC a little over a year after our last inspection. Although we have given the CRC the same rating again, we found that much had improved.

“The management team has made concerted efforts to address the concerns we raised with them in 2018. These efforts are starting to pay dividends, although there is still more to do.”

Inspectors found positive progress with more detailed assessments of cases, more face-to-face meetings with people under supervision and a welcome end to telephone-only contact.

There was also better access to buildings and improvements to services for victims. The CRC has received additional funding from central government and is now delivering good-quality work with people preparing to leave prison.

Inspectors found an “impressive” range of services in place to help individuals move away from further offending. This included support with issues such as housing, alcohol and substance misuse, and bespoke services for women and military veterans.

The Inspectorate, however, concluded more work needs to be done to improve the handling of risk of harm issues. Inspectors have rated all four aspects of case supervision as ‘Requires improvement’.

Mr Russell said: “The public wants to see professional and assured work by probation services to keep people safe from harm.

“In some of the inspected cases, probation staff identified risks but did not analyse or explore issues in more depth. We would have liked to have seen a greater degree of professional curiosity. We also found too little consideration was given to victims.

“In cases where we expected to see home visits, only a third were completed. Probation officers are missing out on the opportunity to see people in their home environment. This information could help to keep others, such as partners and children, safer.

“We urge the CRC to drive further improvements to protect the public from harm.”

Last year, the government announced that the National Probation Service will take over the management of all offenders from 2021 onwards. Northumbria CRC – which is currently managed by Sodexo Justice Services – will no longer operate along with 20 other CRCs across England and Wales. Inspectors were pleased to see the CRC is continuing to invest in training probation officers and is taking proactive steps to support staff.

The Inspectorate has made eight recommendations with the aim of improving the quality of probation services across Northumbria.

ENDS

Notes to editor

1. The report is available at justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation on 11 February 2020 00.01.
2. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth offending and probation services across England and Wales.
3. Northumbria CRC supervised approximately 3,788 people as at July 2019. The organisation covers: Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Gateshead, and Sunderland.
4. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in September 2019.
5. Northumbria CRC is owned by Sodexo Justice Services, part of a large multinational private company with a wide range of commercial interests. Sodexo has operated the CRC since 01 February 2015.
6. For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications Catherine Chan on 07889 405930 or media@hmiprobation.gov.uk (E-mail address)