North Yorkshire Probation has welcomed a report from HM Inspectorate of Probation, which praises its work in managing offenders.

The report, published today, says that offender management in North Yorkshire Probation Area has many strengths and that the Area has acquitted itself very well in the inspection.

The report highlights that the Area had engaged well with external stakeholders and through its contribution to partnership working, has been able to access a wide range of interventions to underpin its work with offenders. It was also held in high regard for its contribution at strategic and operational levels to work on public protection.

Andrew Bridges, HM Chief Inspector of Probation, said:

“The North Yorkshire Probation Area acquitted itself very well in this inspection. The general quality of work, including that to contain Risk of Harm to others, was good and improving and without any sense of complacency by the people doing it. Given the professionalism demonstrated by staff, and the capable leadership provided by managers within the organisation, we are confident that the Area will use the findings from this inspection to bring about further improvements in their services.”
Areas of good work highlighted in the report include:

· the assessment and management of Risk of Harm was strong in North Yorkshire

· Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements were used efficiently to support work with high Risk of Harm offenders, and the area worked well with its partners to ensure these processes were well managed

· the overall quality of assessment and planning in North Yorkshire was of a high standard

· offender managers actively assessed the diverse needs of offenders and put plans in place to address barriers to effective supervision

· offender compliance rates were good and resources had been used efficiently to achieve planned objectives in most cases

· close work with partner agencies was an important strand to the work of the Area

· performance against national targets was consistently good and showed the ability of the organisation to recognise and respond to any performance shortfalls and bring about improvements.

Pete Brown, Chief Officer, North Yorkshire Probation Area, says:

“I am delighted with the findings of the inspection, which highlights the professionalism demonstrated by staff and the capable leadership provided by senior managers.

I am pleased that the assessment and management of Risk of Harm was strong and that the overall quality of assessment and planning was of a high standard. I am also delighted that the report recognises that our performance against national targets has been consistently good.”

Ken Bellamy CBE, Chair, North Yorkshire Probation Board adds:

"The Board welcomes the publication of this report and the assuring comments made by Andrew Bridges, HM Chief Inspector of Probation. It is a very commendable report and is a tribute to the professional skills and dedication of managers and staff to maintaining the high standing and consistently high performance standards of our probation services throughout North Yorkshire.

The communities of North Yorkshire can take assurance from this positive evidence of commitment to high standards that they are well served by dedicated staff, intent on protecting the public and reducing reoffending in North Yorkshire, along with fewer crimes and their victims."

NOTES

1. The Offender Management Inspection of North Yorkshire took place in November 2008.

2. The Offender Management Inspection programme started in May 2006, and is covering all 42 criminal justice Areas in England and Wales over a three-year cycle, with Areas in the same region visited within the space of a few months to facilitate comparisons in performance. This enables the Inspectorate to identify and promote effective work with offenders and disseminate information about good practice.

3. Offender management in each area is assessed in relation to defined inspection criteria. These address the quality of the assessments and interventions carried out with offenders, and the initial outcomes of the interventions, both in relation to criminogenic factors, such as employment, accommodation and substance misuse, and also whether there has been any reduction in the Risk of Harm to others and the risk of reoffending. Overall management of the area is also inspected to see how well it supports good offender management. The inspection includes a focus on the effectiveness of work to minimise the Risk of Harm to others.

4. A key aspect of the North Yorkshire Probation Area inspection was the Area’s management of a representative sample of 110 cases from most categories of orders and licences that had commenced approximately six months previously. This included high Risk of Harm offenders and Prolific and other Priority Offenders.

5. A full copy of the report is available upon request.