Good to see an example of someone putting their head above the parapet and published by the British Society of Criminology no less:-
The Probation Service reintegrated; aspirations, expectations, and anxieties
The Probation Service – what will survive of probation practice, post Transforming Rehabilitation and reintegration?
Saturday June 26 was a significant date in the 110-year history of the probation service in England – the day when the privatised Community Rehabilitation Companies were reintegrated with the public sector National Probation Service, thus returning probation work (well, most of it…) back into the public sector.
It’s notable, and also a little perplexing, that this major reversal of a flagship Conservative-Liberal Democrat government policy was timed to occur on a Saturday – when there would be a much-reduced practitioner demographic actually working on that day.
It’s also notable, if less perplexing, that this significant policy shift received scant media attention. The BBC news website referenced it eventually, as did the Guardian. And a loyal member of my own family tweeted a small, outraged, message, plaintively querying why there was so little attention paid to this event.
The truth is that the profile of Probation work remains consistently low and off the radar. And the other truth is that probation practitioners, by and large, prefer it that way – doing solid work, day in and day out, with a minimum of fuss, and, ideally, a minimum of publicity.
A recent HMIP report into recall practice identified that anxieties regarding adverse publicity was a significant factor for practitioners in decisions regarding enforcement for people being supervised on licence. This consideration reflects the fairly recent politicisation of probation, arguably originating with the Labour government of 1997, which initiated a series of reviews, policies, and legislative measures laying the groundwork for much that is now core to probation practice. In an overview of 21st century probation work, Whitehead notes that ‘the haemorrhaging hearts and misplaced humanitarian social consciences of social radicals and liberals, those with recalcitrant ideological inclinations, operating with a misguided social work philosophy out of step with the modernising and reformist zeitgeist, had to be brought into line as the new political brush swept all before it.’ He goes on to note that these policies generated both NOMS (the National Offender Management Service), and privatisation – neither of which could be said to have been successful, and both of which are now consigned to history.
Subsequently, and over the last two decades, Probation work has been subject to a seemingly relentless series of government interventions, purportedly aimed at improving efficiency and raising standards, which appear also to have had the unanticipated outcome of undermining professional confidence and autonomy in the staff who carry out the work. In fact, I have begun to wonder if the diminution of the professional role may actually be the secondary objective of government policy, reflecting the bureaucratisation and managerialism which now characterise public services more broadly, including teaching, social work, and delivery of health services. (The primary objective with regard to Probation appears to remain that of looking tough on crime.)
In any event, the part privatisation of Probation reflected a specific ideology regarding the diminution of the role of the state, and the purported strengths of the market in delivering imaginative and cost-effective interventions in what have traditionally been seen as public duties and responsibilities. In practice, the well-rehearsed litany of systemic failures across both the CRCs and the NPS post Transforming Rehabilitation (TR) appear to have contributed to the current process of reintegration.
On June 30, 2021, returning to my office base for my first working day as an employee of The Probation Service, I was thrilled to see that a number of staff were already present – in itself a novelty, after the 15-month hiatus of remote working, implemented via the Exceptional Delivery Model, put in place to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. I was even more excited to see that a number of the attendees were former colleagues, and amazed to realise that it was seven years since we last shared an office space. For the first time in a long while, it felt as if I was back with my tribe – a warm sense of belonging suffused the catch ups and the chats…
But I swiftly realised that this benign sense of wellbeing is likely to be limited to a minority of staff, and possibly to be short lived. The majority of probation workers will have known no other context than working for a CRC, or for the NPS. The two organisational cultures remain vastly different, and there are anxieties and tensions on both sides. CRC staff are being welcomed, which slightly gives the impression that it is the NPS which is hosting the party – a perception compounded by the lengthy lists of mandatory training (online) which staff will be required to complete; the inevitable glitches as IT equipment is distributed and operationalised; the eternal conundrum of navigating the Single Operating Platform (SOP); and, much more seriously, worrying concerns for some practitioners regarding their former CRC role in The Probation Service model. Each individual will experience reintegration in very different ways, and, for many, the sense of diminution of autonomy and authority is likely to be a significant feature.
The Probation Service will inevitably take a period of time to settle, and to start to perform effectively. The Probation Service Target Operating Model for future practice has many good things to say about aspirations and expectations in the Service’s future – much of it recognisable as the basis for the traditional principles of probation work: valuing the individual, recognising the possibility of personal change, and the integral role of the one-to-one supervisory relationship, sustained over time. In the aftermath of Transforming Rehabilitation, many practitioners described a sense of feeling deskilled and uncertain in their professional role. It seems likely that this sense of dislocation will be a feature of the early stages of probation work in the coming months.
Two things give me optimism for the future of The Probation Service. Firstly, the characteristics of people who work in probation, which have remained astonishingly consistent over time. And, relatedly, the culture of probation as an organisation. In their study of probation practice and culture, Mawby and Worrall refer to the characteristics of probation work, including the drive to achieve job satisfaction, notably through building relationships with the people subject to supervision; and, relatedly, a sense of meaning derived from the job, which many practitioners regard as a vocation. Pre TR, they argued that this approach had survived, notwithstanding the myriad restructures and reorganisations of probation. Whatever the challenges of reintegration, it is not a naive aspiration that recent and future events may continue to assert the continuity, and validity, of this judgement.
It’s also notable, if less perplexing, that this significant policy shift received scant media attention. The BBC news website referenced it eventually, as did the Guardian. And a loyal member of my own family tweeted a small, outraged, message, plaintively querying why there was so little attention paid to this event.
The truth is that the profile of Probation work remains consistently low and off the radar. And the other truth is that probation practitioners, by and large, prefer it that way – doing solid work, day in and day out, with a minimum of fuss, and, ideally, a minimum of publicity.
A recent HMIP report into recall practice identified that anxieties regarding adverse publicity was a significant factor for practitioners in decisions regarding enforcement for people being supervised on licence. This consideration reflects the fairly recent politicisation of probation, arguably originating with the Labour government of 1997, which initiated a series of reviews, policies, and legislative measures laying the groundwork for much that is now core to probation practice. In an overview of 21st century probation work, Whitehead notes that ‘the haemorrhaging hearts and misplaced humanitarian social consciences of social radicals and liberals, those with recalcitrant ideological inclinations, operating with a misguided social work philosophy out of step with the modernising and reformist zeitgeist, had to be brought into line as the new political brush swept all before it.’ He goes on to note that these policies generated both NOMS (the National Offender Management Service), and privatisation – neither of which could be said to have been successful, and both of which are now consigned to history.
Subsequently, and over the last two decades, Probation work has been subject to a seemingly relentless series of government interventions, purportedly aimed at improving efficiency and raising standards, which appear also to have had the unanticipated outcome of undermining professional confidence and autonomy in the staff who carry out the work. In fact, I have begun to wonder if the diminution of the professional role may actually be the secondary objective of government policy, reflecting the bureaucratisation and managerialism which now characterise public services more broadly, including teaching, social work, and delivery of health services. (The primary objective with regard to Probation appears to remain that of looking tough on crime.)
In any event, the part privatisation of Probation reflected a specific ideology regarding the diminution of the role of the state, and the purported strengths of the market in delivering imaginative and cost-effective interventions in what have traditionally been seen as public duties and responsibilities. In practice, the well-rehearsed litany of systemic failures across both the CRCs and the NPS post Transforming Rehabilitation (TR) appear to have contributed to the current process of reintegration.
On June 30, 2021, returning to my office base for my first working day as an employee of The Probation Service, I was thrilled to see that a number of staff were already present – in itself a novelty, after the 15-month hiatus of remote working, implemented via the Exceptional Delivery Model, put in place to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. I was even more excited to see that a number of the attendees were former colleagues, and amazed to realise that it was seven years since we last shared an office space. For the first time in a long while, it felt as if I was back with my tribe – a warm sense of belonging suffused the catch ups and the chats…
But I swiftly realised that this benign sense of wellbeing is likely to be limited to a minority of staff, and possibly to be short lived. The majority of probation workers will have known no other context than working for a CRC, or for the NPS. The two organisational cultures remain vastly different, and there are anxieties and tensions on both sides. CRC staff are being welcomed, which slightly gives the impression that it is the NPS which is hosting the party – a perception compounded by the lengthy lists of mandatory training (online) which staff will be required to complete; the inevitable glitches as IT equipment is distributed and operationalised; the eternal conundrum of navigating the Single Operating Platform (SOP); and, much more seriously, worrying concerns for some practitioners regarding their former CRC role in The Probation Service model. Each individual will experience reintegration in very different ways, and, for many, the sense of diminution of autonomy and authority is likely to be a significant feature.
The Probation Service will inevitably take a period of time to settle, and to start to perform effectively. The Probation Service Target Operating Model for future practice has many good things to say about aspirations and expectations in the Service’s future – much of it recognisable as the basis for the traditional principles of probation work: valuing the individual, recognising the possibility of personal change, and the integral role of the one-to-one supervisory relationship, sustained over time. In the aftermath of Transforming Rehabilitation, many practitioners described a sense of feeling deskilled and uncertain in their professional role. It seems likely that this sense of dislocation will be a feature of the early stages of probation work in the coming months.
Two things give me optimism for the future of The Probation Service. Firstly, the characteristics of people who work in probation, which have remained astonishingly consistent over time. And, relatedly, the culture of probation as an organisation. In their study of probation practice and culture, Mawby and Worrall refer to the characteristics of probation work, including the drive to achieve job satisfaction, notably through building relationships with the people subject to supervision; and, relatedly, a sense of meaning derived from the job, which many practitioners regard as a vocation. Pre TR, they argued that this approach had survived, notwithstanding the myriad restructures and reorganisations of probation. Whatever the challenges of reintegration, it is not a naive aspiration that recent and future events may continue to assert the continuity, and validity, of this judgement.
Anne Burrell is a Social work trained Probation practitioner, still at the workface, whilst undertaking a part time PhD at De Montfort Uni, researching professional identity in probation.
Optimistic indeed when the organisation's senior management structure is predominantly populated with bullies who do not share the practitioner characteristics & culture Ms Burrell celebrates, and who are more than willing to bend as directed by politicians in order to preserve their power & authority.
ReplyDeleteTheir motivation is a far cry from "the characteristics of probation work, including the drive to achieve job satisfaction, notably through building relationships with the people subject to supervision; and, relatedly, a sense of meaning derived from the job, which many practitioners regard as a vocation."
Those self-important, self-congratulatory, selfish "excellent leaders" have always been, and will continue to be, toxic to the probation culture; thereby preventing that culture to flourish.
"The majority of probation workers will have known no other context than working for a CRC, or for the NPS."
ReplyDeleteBy imposing TR and then refusing to recognise the chaos & damage inflicted TR, then the inevitable delay in reverse engineering NPS, the political class driving the agenda have achieved much of what they envisaged, i.e. regime change.
The eager, greedy lickspittles have unwittingly implemented a politicised environment & imperative for probation practitioners - social control. The authoritarian command & control model that HMPPS delights in is the same mirror which they will expect probation practitioners to hold to their caseloads:
"Do as you are told. Do not dissent. You will not like the consequences. And those consequences WILL follow unless you do as you are told."
That is an excellent point of view. It has been the most dramatic change in our history. The management have gone along with the directives year on year. Oddly the union Napo had also adopted the same practices and mantra. Exactly why I think is because they now drink from the same pool than follow an employee's charter for representation negotiation and agreements based in contractual obligations. Do or die is now the NPS line and the union Napo is powerless to support any professional saviours or direction. What awful for us now.
DeleteThanks Ann. Really good. I just keep thinking that whilst it is reintegration it is not going back to before. In the before I worked under the umbrella of the county council, their policies and procedures. In fact I transferred from social services originally.
ReplyDeleteI took pride in being a council employee and there were significant benefits. Security and stability being amongst them. Also very strong socialist values throughout.
I suspect the now is going to be centrally lead. I worry that nothing will happen to benefit the people on probation.
Anyway at least the pension is good.