A PROBATION service which helps convicts reintegrate into communities upon release from prison has been blasted by a regulator for being ‘insufficient’.
Barnsley and Rotherham Probation Delivery Unit (PDU) received an overall rating of ‘inadequate’ following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.
It was the first inspection of the PDU since it was established under the unification of probation services in 2021.
‘Unprecedented’ staff sickness was noted, with an average loss of 23 days per year.
It was even more acute at probation officer grade, where the figure was 35 days per year.
Inspectors said there was a legacy of ‘sickness culture’ and, although the picture had improved, the overall staffing picture remained ‘delicate’. Additionally, there were gaps in staffing, with 28 per cent of officer vacancies unfilled and an unclear timescale of when they would be recruited to.
Barnsley’s reoffending rate is just above the regional average at 28.4 per cent, with Rotherham’s just below the regional average at 27.1 per cent.
Martin Jones, chief inspector of probation, said: “The overall resourcing challenges were, understandably, hampering the PDU’s ability to deliver high-quality casework.
“Barnsley and Rotherham is one of 11 PDUs in the Yorkshire and the Humber region, delivering probation work across two main probation offices, with one in Barnsley and the other in Rotherham.
“Disappointingly, we found a significant number of deficits which were exacerbated by extremely high sickness levels across all staff groups.
“While the leadership had steered the PDU to a more stable position, the quality of work to manage people on probation and to keep people safe was disappointingly insufficient.
“We inspected 39 community orders and 21 releases on licence from custody where sentences and licences, and we also conducted 57 interviews with probation practitioners.
“There were deficits across all standards of casework, but it was particularly poor in assessment and implementation and delivery, where only 25 per cent of cases were judged sufficient in supporting the safety of other people effectively.”
Inspectors were impressed with the services available, with effective drug and alcohol services for people on probation and an assistant psychologist co-located at the Barnsley office for up to four days a week.
The offer for women was also extensive, with a weekly group, a sexual health clinic and both the Barnsley and Rotherham offices having women-only reporting times to support their needs.
Mr Jones added: “I know Barnsley and Rotherham PDU will be disappointed with the overall outcome of this inspection, but their encouraging work with women shows that if they act on the recommendations in this report, they potentially have the tools at their disposal to make the improvements required to deliver an effective service.
“The report makes five recommendations, including to recruit a deputy head of service to reduce the workloads of senior leaders and to analyse information on domestic abuse and child safeguarding to adequately inform the quality of assessment.”
