North West probation service rated good - but with room for improvement - by government inspectors

The North West division of the National Probation Service (NPS) is performing well but needs to improve specific aspects of its work, according to inspectors.

HM Inspectorate of Probation conducted a routine inspection in January and February 2020 of the service that manages more than 17,000 offenders. Inspectors looked at 10 aspects of the division’s work and gave an overall rating of ‘Good’.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said: “We last inspected the North West division of the NPS in October 2018. On our return, the service has retained its ‘Good’ rating and is performing well in many respects.

“Experienced and enthusiastic leaders are focused on providing a high-quality service for people who have been released from prison or who are serving community sentences.

“Supervision starts promptly, and staff involve individuals in the planning and delivery of their sentences.”

Inspectors commended the division for recruiting and training new staff, after experiencing a 20% vacancy rate at the previous inspection in October 2018.

Mr Russell said: “Since then, the division has taken on 153 people and is supporting them to undertake the Professional Qualification in Probation. This was a creditable way to tackle vacancies and means the division is now fully staffed at all grades for the first time since 2015.”

However, inspectors were concerned to find that many staff had workloads that were too demanding. Nearly one in three probation officers had workloads that were over 110 per cent of expected capacity.

Inspectors also found shortfalls in some areas of practice. 

Mr Russell said: “Probation services should protect the public and support the rehabilitation of offenders.

“Across this division, probation staff do not request information from the police and local authorities in a consistent way. We think domestic abuse and child safeguarding checks are vital to keep more people safe.

“In too many instances – four out of ten inspected cases – supervision did not focus sufficiently on helping individuals to address factors related to their offending, including tackling substance misuse.”

The Inspectorate is encouraging the division to invest in the professional development of its staff to drive improvement.

HM Prison and Probation Service and the Ministry of Justice provide central functions to all NPS divisions. 

Mr Russell said: “When these functions do not work well, this has a negative impact on the division’s ability to deliver a quality service.

“For example, the NPS national training team has insufficient resources to deliver mandatory training in child and adult safeguarding. This could make a difference to the quality of work in the North West.

“We reported previously on the poor condition of several buildings in the division.

“While there has been some progress, our inspectors found many ongoing problems including a vermin infestation in Rochdale and two out of five interview rooms in Blackburn being out of service for six months. During a site visit to a probation office, an inspector found potentially dangerous exposed electrical wires and a bucket on a desk collecting water.

“Working in inadequate buildings has a negative impact on staff and could jeopardise the health and safety of individuals under probation supervision. The Ministry of Justice must address these issues as a priority.”

The Inspectorate has made 10 recommendations to improve the work of the North West division of the NPS yet further.

The full report is available here:

• www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation/inspections/nwnps2020/