Tuesday 28 October 2014

The Waiting Game 2

It's clear from this blog post, by Ian Dunt on the Politics.co.uk website and published at 10.13 this morning, that there's been some very selective briefing going on by Napo. In view of this, and the fact that it's therefore highly likely to be completely accurate, I hope the author will not mind me republishing it here in full:-   
Officers say public are in danger - so why won't MoJ publish its safety test?
Before the killing, he already had a history of domestic violence. Back in the day, before the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) separated out the probation service into multiple units to prepare them for privatisation, he would have been allocated to a trained officer. But under the chaotic new system, he was put under the supervision of a trainee probation officer. Home visits were supposed to have been undertaken every four months, but this didn't happen. In the end, he murdered his partner and then took his own life.
That was one of the stories told by probation staff to lawyers representing the National Association of Probation Officers (Napo) after they asked for evidence of dangers in the MoJ's new system. There are many more.
People don't really have a clear idea of what probation is. They are much more worked up by the privatisation of forests or mail services than they are about the supervision of those who have committed a crime. But when forests are privatised, we lose somewhere to take a walk. When probation is privatised, people die.
The problem with Chris Grayling's probation policy is very common to privatisation, regardless of the sector. The first thing which happens is you atomise the service. What was once one organisation with clear lines of communication is sliced up into multiple bodies, where responsibility is unclear and information is not shared efficiently. 
Grayling cut the probation service in two, keeping high-risk offenders with the still publicly-owned National Probation Service and handing low-and-medium-risk offenders to various 'Community Rehabilitation Companies'. These were then given a bit of time to bed-in until they are sold off to private firms to run.
The problem is people are not units in an Excel spreadsheet. They are complex beings, who migrate from low to medium to high risk and back again without regard for a probation officer's formal responsibilities or the commercial contracts handed out by the MoJ. Officers do not have easy access to information about the people under their care.

Cases passed up to the national service from the rehabilitation companies are sometimes not taken, or left to sit there for a while. Overwork in both the companies and the service has led to dangerous cases being missed.
A legal warning sent to Treasury solicitors by lawyers acting for Napo lays out the evidence for their concerns. Lawyers had gone to Napo's annual general meeting and asked members about their personal experiences. What follows is what probation officers themselves thought the splitting-up of the service had done, in their personal experience. It's not perfect data. By virtue of being Napo members, officers are likely to be extremely critical of the privatisation plan. But we do not have any other evidence. The MoJ refuses to publish its own safety evaluations.
Staff in the rehabilitation companies say they are dangerously overworked, with their targets being significantly ratcheted up. One officer was mistakenly allocated three high risk cases. She says she was already overworked, so the arduous process of reallocating them prevented her devoting sufficient time to an offender convicted of serious assault in a pub. The offender has since been charged with murder committed while under the supervision of the rehabilitation company.
Another officer says they were so overworked they could not dedicate sufficient time to a female offender who was being bullied by her partner. She was found dead from a drugs overdose, with an investigation ongoing as to whether it was deliberate or accidental.
An offender convicted of child cruelty was assessed by staff at a rehabilitation company to be high risk, but the probation service rejected the transfer request. Rehabilitation company staff have therefore been left with it, even though the offender downplays the abuse and has now entered a relationship with a partner who has two children under the age of 16. Staff believe the children are at an unacceptable risk of harm.
Overwork at the probation service means oral reports are often given to courts instead of standard reports. Officers believe this leads to inadequate risk assessments. One offender with a history of domestic violence had threatened a 13-year-old child with a samurai sword. Following an oral report they were sentenced to a community order. Ten days later they broke into their partner's home and held her underwater with a bike chain.

And then there are the more minor cases, stemming from lack of information about the offender. A female rehabilitation company staff member was unable to access the risk assessment of an offender she was required to interview. If she had done, she would have known it was unsafe for a single female officer to be alone with him. During the meeting he took out his penis and started masturbating in front of her.
Another delivering a cognitive-behavioural programme aimed at reducing violence also found they were unable to access offender records. They ended up with two rival gang members in the same building at the same time.
Or there are the flashes of danger and violence which come from top-down ministerial initiatives imposing themselves on delicate real world situations. One probation service officer was asked to accompany another officer to her first meeting with an offender who had been reallocated to her. The offender had made good progress, but was aggrieved at being reallocated and became very aggressive. The probation service officer, who had been in the service for six years, said it was the single most dangerous incident he had faced in that time.
Napo feels the current system is unsafe for staff, offenders and the public. Rigorous safety tests are therefore needed before the contracts are signed and it is made permanent. The MoJ says it has conducted safety tests. But it refuses to make them public.
It did not conduct a full pilot. Instead it froze the system post-break-up but pre-sell-off and treated that as a pilot. It says it has built in "a process of ongoing rigorous testing". The MoJ insisted it would not enter into a binding contract unless Grayling was "satisfied that he had sufficient evidence that it is safe to do so". But it's not prepared to release information on what basis he's making that decision. We are being asked to trust him.
The MoJ refused a freedom of information request on the safety tests, saying it would be prejudicial to the effective conduct of public affairs.
In an act of almost Kafkaesque logical contortion, the MoJ criticised lawyers for failing to provide evidence of the deficiencies, the very nature and content of which they refuse to disclose. This is what forced lawyers to start gathering evidence from probation officers themselves. They've now sent the evidence above, together with many other cases, to Grayling. They ask that he considers it. If he thinks there are risks to be assessed, he should explain how he will do so. If not, he should say on what evidence he bases this view.
Failure to do so means Napo will pursue a judicial review, just days after the Lords prevented Grayling from effectively getting rid of the legal mechanism. One wonders why he took such dislike to it.
Lawyers are also threatening Grayling with a private law duty in his duty of care to probation staff, who they say are being put needlessly at risk by the break-up.
This is now down to the wire. The Treasury solicitors, who deal with these sorts of letters, had until 16:00 last Friday to reply to the letter. They did so at 16:05, asking for another two days. The new deadline is today at 16:00. But there are rumours that the sell-off of the companies may also be announced today. We've been expecting it since last month.
There is an easy out for Grayling here. Lawyers say they will give more time if he undertakes not to sign contracts on the rehabilitation companies until 21 days after he provides a "substantive response" to the evidence provided by Napo. As a basic standard of ensuring public safety, that should not be an arduous undertaking to give. But the suspicion remains that, as with other privatisations, it is ideology, not facts on the ground, which are driving the policy.

63 comments:

  1. I think more needs to be said about burn out facing myself and colleagues in NPS re workload, reports and serious nature of offences we have.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is an excellent point - it seems asking too much to encourage some blogging about it - I wonder if any of the evidence submitted to Napo mentioned that aspect.

      The stress comes through to some extent in this published last night

      http://effieperine.wordpress.com/2014/10/27/somewhere-beyond-the-sea-napo-2014/

      Delete
    2. Dear Anon 12:51 have just been phoned by a friend to ask was that my post! As you know, it's not mine....but the issue of work related stress really needs addressing. From those who say " we all feel it and we just get on with it" to the those at real risk of serious harm due to it who simply are not well enough to be at work. Stress is serious and can end lives. If anyone is in any doubt go to the Health and Safety Executive website. Our employer has a duty of care to its staff and IMO this has been completely forgotten BUT this is one responsibility an employer cannot abdicate. Remember the recent posts about vicarious liability? Staff health is being harmed by the employer.

      Delete
    3. I'm anon 12:51. I also forgot to mention also the numerous parole reports. And also oral hearings

      Delete
  2. NAPO have said "they expect to provide more information" by way of email this evening.
    If Grayling can't, (or more likely wont) provide the information requested (it would be too damaging), then it's definately JR!
    Keep your eyes on your inbox!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Make no mistake. .today was/is the day to advise the bidders...any delay is due to Grayling bottling it ! Keep up the pressure..

      Delete
  3. Meanwhile the MOJ are out touting for new trainees again: -

    https://www.facebook.com/ProbationGraduateDiploma/posts/730716153632392

    ReplyDelete
  4. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_probation?src=wpstubs&tour=firstedit wiki page with notes on private probation if others want to add comment

    ReplyDelete
  5. On half term so hoping your blog will update me with news of my future!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Worry not - on Red Alert 24/7 here at blog HQ.

      Delete
  6. Have they decided who has won the TR1 bids yet or has it been put off again.

    ReplyDelete
  7. As I work for a voluntary organization and we are waiting to hear our future of this outcome. I'm not 100% sure if this will do more damage than good. But probation staff do need help with their ever increasing case load.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's looking pretty certain that any announcement by MoJ has been delayed. I understand Dame Ursula Brennan told the Justice Affairs Committee this morning - 'we will announce when we are ready'.

      Today was the day decided upon though, so something has happened.......

      Delete
    2. increasing case load as a result of graylings mad cuts and staff leaving.

      Delete
    3. She says some amazing things and Spurr seemed to mouth an outright lie when he said the split was done on baqsis of previous 12 months work!

      McDonnell & Llwyd are simply excellent banging the Probation staff drum as often as possible.

      http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Player.aspx?meetingId=16253&player=silverlight

      Delete
  8. NAPO website latest, no response from MOJ solicitors today so NAPO have given them further 24 hours as final attempt - to prove reasonableness, hurray it looks like it is now on !!!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Crc notified tomorrow - weds - of preferred bidder. This info just received on crc email.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What did it say in the email?

      Delete
    2. https://www.napo.org.uk/news/judicial-review-update-0

      Delete
    3. See 18.07 post - not the link andrew supplied

      Delete
  10. OBITUARY

    John Shember, latterly of Cambridgeshire Probation.

    http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/oct/28/john-shember-obituary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Our friend John Shember, who has died aged 68 of leukaemia, joined the probation service in 1969 in Birmingham, where the three of us met. This was a time when alternatives to custody were being actively developed, and belief in welfare and rehabilitation approaches was strong. Birmingham was undergoing profound structural and cultural changes that gradually extended to its deprived inner-city areas, where our challenging “patches” were.

      John championed the approach to offending that saw lawbreakers as human beings capable of change, given suitable challenge, help and encouragement. He disagreed with the primacy of the “prison works” ideology or “one size fits all” programmes. John, a free thinker, was strongly committed to research and improving the quality of information available to the service. He went on to work in teams in Scotland and Cambridgeshire, then West Yorkshire, and finally in Warwickshire, where he was appointed as the senior probation officer for Rugby in 1982.

      As philosophies changed, John left this senior role and returned as a main grade officer, working again in Cambridge, where he got to know Araucaria (The Rev John Graham), his favourite Guardian crossword compiler. Even after he became ill, he stayed up to date on policy and practice. He was distressed at the attempts by government to exploit the service, to split it up, sell it off to private bidders, and to make it subject to payment by results, a process the writer Alan Bennett recently described as “beyond satire”.

      John was born in Oxford, the middle child of Hilde and Albert Shember, who had fled Vienna in 1939. His father was a skilled mechanic and the family lived in north Oxford, where John and his sisters had a secure and idyllic childhood. John attended the City of Oxford boys’ high school, then took an external London University degree in sociology before joining the Birmingham Probation Service as a direct entrant. During his time in Birmingham, he studied part-time for a Bradford MA in applied social studies.

      John stayed true all his life to the ideals that raised him. He spoke of his wish to be of service to the country that had sheltered his parents on the brink of war, then generously educated him and his sisters. He saw public service as an honourable way forward and he set the highest standards for himself and those with whom he worked.

      He is survived by his wife, Bevelie, whom he married in 1979, their children, Griff, Denzil and Eleanor, and his grandchildren, Tom, Alex, Edith and Mabel.

      Delete
  11. My thinking is that Grayling cannot provide the documentation requested because not only will its contents make a strong case 'against' privatisation, but it probably contains information that Grayling has keept hidden from bidders.
    So, making the information asked for public, it may evidence that he's lied to absolutely everyone.
    However, if everything was all above board he'd just stick his fingers up to NAPO and carry on regardless, which indicates to me that theres things that he really does not want to disclose.
    He's a nasty peice of work, so I'm more then interested to see just what he'll choose to do.
    IMHO whatever he does will only make the hole he's digging himself even bigger.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Just heard that the MOJ are releasing their new Autumn/Winter collection within their TR2 catalogue . Just had a flip through it and unfortunatly it only comes in 3 shades of gray- ling-ering into what can only be described as'dull'. I think this was based on their Spring/Summer catalogue which apparently the consumer hated! However in this new one we have a grey ORA which looks positively distressed, then in metallic we have TTG in what can only be described as shifty looking and bits falling apart and the last but not least PBR in a very dull gray ooh and very expensive to the consumer. I did check out in the collection whether there was anything on the victim range but bear with whilst i just flick through the catalogue again.... ermmmmm........................................................NO. It will soon be out on email at a place near you!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. When do you think the bids will be announced as every one has been waiting for this for ages now. And do you think Capita will win the bids for what they have put in for ??? I met the lady from MOJ and the chair man from Capita last Friday. I must admit this will pave the way for ex offenders to use there first hand experience in a positive way.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. " this will pave the way for ex offenders to use there first hand experience in a positive way. "

      err - how, when, where and if so what is different from now? - I worked with an ex-probation client as a colleague in about 1977 and MANY have done stuff as voluntary associates or volunteers or employees of related organisations down the years.

      There is nothing stopping any willing ex-offender to start as a volunteer today- as long as they can demonstrate the exness of their offending and stability in other ways and have a contribution to make - though sadly I am not aware of any probation services currently utilising VAs - no doubt someone will correct me if I am wrong.

      Delete
    2. Ex offenders with free time they are willing to give voluntary will in the whole be unemployed.
      The current benefit system will make it very difficult for many interested in volunteering, and many will be too concerned of falling foul of it to put their hand up.

      Delete
    3. The rhetoric around volunteer mentoring is naive at best. In my experience, it is only effective with a small number of offenders with some mild dysfunction or lack of confidence. The idea that 55,000 extra short sentence prisoners will all respond to this kind if handholding is wholly untested and may even prove counterproductive with old lags being lured back into offending.

      Delete
  14. To be honest it will fall apart weather it's privatized or not. I look at it as it will help PO's with there work load. Other London probations have had peer mentors help them in London and Essex and it has been a success as offenders felt they had more support then if it was just a PO.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Email from ceo - written ministerial statement to parliament in respect of preferred bidders for 21 crc - maybe subject to change.
    Teleconference with bgsw tomorrow and immediately following this ceo issuing a letter to all staff, along with letter from preferred bidder, a list of all preferred bidders nationwide, a q&a from Tr team and a letter from SoS .

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. which area?

      Delete
    2. BGSW - Bristol Gloucestershire Somerset and Wiltshire
      odds on it is sentinel

      Delete
    3. It says bgsw but I'd guess every trust will be the same

      Delete
    4. How the holy fuck are sentinel even in the running

      Delete
    5. Scratch that, I figured it out

      http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/david-griffiths/1/684/875

      Delete
  16. It would not be surprising if all winning bids leaned heavily on use of ex-clients as volunteer mentors; after all they've been steered in that direction pretty heavily by all of Grayling's pronouncements over the last 18 months - despite the lack of any meaningful evidence on effectiveness. Don't get me wrong, I am in favour of the use of volunteers and think mentoring can be very positive - but the idea that there is a vast reserve army of volunteers ready and waiting to go is fanciful nonsense. I have worked with some very good volunteers, but also some very poor ones who were unreliable - and sometimes dangerous. Grayling's clarion call of "mentors for everyone" will fail, because it's simply not targeted at the right people.

    ReplyDelete
  17. If napo go forJR Will the sell of be delayed until a verdict? And if so is likely to take things past the cut off for changes before the next election?

    ReplyDelete
  18. I'm not saying it's stopping ex offenders from volunteering but it's helping them get paid work with working within probation. Ex offenders can emphasis with the offender and show them that just because you have a criminal record doesn't mean you can't be a positive role model and let's face it probation officers have not got the time to sit down with there clients and spend time with them because they are over worked and under paid

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As said above, IDS,s punitative benefit system will perhaps be Graylings worst enemy when trying to recruit ex offending volunteers.

      Delete
  19. I am not comfortable with the increased use of volunteers to do what should be paid work especially for private companies. I assume that a fair amount of volunteers hope to get into paid work. I am worried that they will be used for free labour and discarded if any problems arise. SFO, oh it was the volunteers fault.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many wont be volunteers, they'll be forced onto placements by the work programme to fill any shortfall inrequirements.
      Reluctant, resentfull and uninterested volunteers will just create havoc.

      Delete
    2. I agree with you 18.19 that they will blame it on the volunteer. Many of my friends now work as paid support workers for probation through Catch 22 and St Giles Trust and I know user voice works with Essex probation. Myself as a ex offender would one day love to train as a PO only 4 years left till my conviction is spent. I still cringe when I look at my DBS.

      Delete
    3. Please do not lose sight of how many ex offenders then went on to qualify as Probation Officers and have worked so well for our profession....over many years.

      Delete
    4. Thanks anon 18.58 it's giving me inspiration to train as a PO.

      Delete
    5. Anon 19.07 there was a recent change in spent convictions much shorter now for some sentences check it out

      Delete
    6. Anon 20.08 thanks for that I know I only had a year taken off mine. But only 4 years left. I can do my degree in that time :)

      Delete
  20. does anyone remember chris saying lags would meet offenders at the gate?

    ReplyDelete
  21. Does anyone know when the bidders are being informed on the CRC decisions - or do we have to find out from the press?

    ReplyDelete
  22. I think the term Lags is disgusting to be honest and maybe ex offenders would do a better job then narrow minded people just doing the job for the money and no passion to help others

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Lags" is a term never used by probation professionals, do not confuse us with GRAYLING who did use this term....we share neither hearts or minds with him.....and your judgemental comments lead to to wonder if you are suited to work with those we work with!

      Delete
    2. I have passion empathy motivation and think outside the box. So yes.

      Delete
  23. Bidders will know now, it will be embargoed, they will have been afforded time to prepare announcements for the stock exchange ( listed companies) and press releases. That is how it works.

    ReplyDelete
  24. When will it be released to the public?? As I am excited to see if Capita won and how many of there bids they did eg London and the midlands.

    ReplyDelete
  25. I'm not excited in fact I feel sick to the stomach, I hope none of them win, who wants to work for these companies. LEAVE PROBATION ALONE. Bring on the JR.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm excited to find out which privateer is the first to realise that they can't cope (or make enough profit) and hand back the keys to NOMS...

      Delete
  26. Twitter: Angela Cossins ‏@a_cossins 17m17 minutes ago

    If you work for NPS ... Our 1st Staff survey is on EPIC til 31 Oct. Please consider completing. It's a great opportunity to share your views"

    Please please please consider completing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. not that anyone will take a blind bit of notice.

      another managerialism tick box exercise. Looks good that that they can say 'we look after our staff and seek their opinions' (but then ignore them). I expect the return from said survey will be low.

      Delete
  27. Capita has a bad track record in relation to the court translating contract they have. So I wouldn't be atall excited if they won the probation contract. I too feel sick at the thought of probation being sold off in lots to companies whose main driver is profit.

    ReplyDelete
  28. What is the JR please. Thanks in advance.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Crapita...enough said really...

    ReplyDelete
  30. JR= Judicial Review

    ReplyDelete
  31. There is more and more evidence every day. Are we all remembering to continue to pass it on still? Do we send it directly to Yvonne or do we send it to napo campaigns? A reminder would be useful as well as confirmation that info is still required (if this is indeed the case).

    ReplyDelete
  32. Dear Registered Tier 2 and 3 providers
    Following a rigorous evaluation and moderation process, The Secretary of State for Justice today announced the list of Preferred Bidders for each of the 21 Contract Package Areas. The full list of bidders can be found in the attached table.
    20 of the 21 areas will be led by new partnerships and joint ventures between private sector firms and some of Britain’s biggest and most successful rehabilitation charities. Half of the partnerships chosen as preferred bidders also include new “mutual” organisations set up by current probation staff to take over their own organisations.
    In addition, around 75% of the 300 subcontractors named in the successful bids are voluntary sector or mutual organisations, putting them at the frontline of offender rehabilitation as the Government battles against stubbornly high reoffending rates.
    Furthermore, there are now almost 1,000 organisations, including 700 listed as VCSE (voluntary, community or social enterprise) which, like you, have registered as potential Tier 2 and Tier 3 providers.
    We expect to award final contracts by the end of 2014.
    Further details can be found on the competition webpage: http://www.justice.gov.uk/transforming-rehabilitation/competition
    The full press release can be found on our website: www.gov.uk

    ReplyDelete