tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post3707651432774390321..comments2024-03-29T06:40:58.606+00:00Comments on On Probation Blog: TR in DerbyshireJim Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00258147767051200157noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-89561010784677216232016-09-23T20:49:47.129+01:002016-09-23T20:49:47.129+01:00I got a Toblerone this week but did share it with ...I got a Toblerone this week but did share it with my colleagues wouldn't dream of turning such kindness down especially when client was penniless ! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-28702579870375894792016-09-23T19:50:52.784+01:002016-09-23T19:50:52.784+01:00re 15 50 - a thank you card is NOT a gift to be ha...re 15 50 - a thank you card is NOT a gift to be handed back. I don't know where you got that idea. It is a simple thank you and we would put them on the wall, as still happens now in hospitals and other places who engage with the public. Since when did people hand thank you cards back? It was not uncommon and were gestures for which we were very appreciative, working in a potentially volatile environment and knowing that we had done some good work. Work that was not so much as 'dealing with the law' as you so awkwardly say, but working with people within the law. And I'm sure it still happens now for some staff who go that extra mile.<br /><br /> There WERE occasional chocolates given but they were left in the general office for all staff to share; we were allowed to accept them but not allowed to keep them for ourselves. Anything larger or personal was not allowed at all and quite understandably.<br /><br />mlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-34566921821561280662016-09-23T17:16:22.502+01:002016-09-23T17:16:22.502+01:0009.22 is right to caution against the halcyon days...09.22 is right to caution against the halcyon days. The probation culture did not go sour overnight. The impact of managerialism and a competitive culture based on league tables and targets, did much harm to the ethos, job satisfaction and service delivery. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-45079849390464015432016-09-23T15:50:48.048+01:002016-09-23T15:50:48.048+01:00Reviewing gifts is inappropriate. You should of ha...Reviewing gifts is inappropriate. You should of handed it back. Your there to deal the law and not take giftsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-91510540833002587562016-09-23T13:48:11.364+01:002016-09-23T13:48:11.364+01:009 22 -quote - 'our public probation officer pe...9 22 -quote - 'our public probation officer personas tended to be slightly holier than thou, unable to see and admit that there by grace of God go all of us'. <br /><br />That is a bit presumptuous. All of them?? Yes, there were some pompous PO's, everyone is different, but there were more hardworking, sensitive, understanding PO's who went out of their way to support while challenging; and spending excessive amounts of time to get to know the client to develop their trust, as they explored issues in their background, whatever their character and resistance; to give them space to cry as they offloaded sadness and horror stories; and to share with the client their own personal experiences if relevant. <br /><br />I and several other colleagues, would consistently work longer hours, and the thank you cards that we would receive at the end of an Order, even from the unexpected 'no-hopers', would demonstrate how much the offender appreciated our support, trust and honesty, firm but fair.<br /><br /> Holier than thou? Where was your experience of that with every colleague? <br /><br />But I do agree with you about the mechanical, soulless, time consuming, repetitive Oasys! But -'middle class souls'?? Maybe we northerners didn't know what 'middle class' was!!!mlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-48550428385703501402016-09-23T12:43:59.160+01:002016-09-23T12:43:59.160+01:00https://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-5d6b-PROBATI...https://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-5d6b-PROBATION-SERVICE-AT-CRISIS-POINT#.V-UUTcvTXqAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-72533003461856368522016-09-23T10:05:47.295+01:002016-09-23T10:05:47.295+01:00How much longer can the CRCs rely on 'teething...How much longer can the CRCs rely on 'teething problems' excuses? Good to see the contrast between the working NPS and dysfunctional CRC. I wonder if the fact that one has a public ethos has anything to do with the gulf in performance. That the CRCs would never work in the private sector was the prediction of all the experts with the exception of the neoliberal ideologues, the evidence in support of this prediction is now flowing in. <br /><br />No, it's got nothing to do with teething problems and delays in implementation of so-called operating models. That sort of mitigation is glib and reeks of denial. The truth is the CRCs are not fit for purpose. The mad experiment, based on a crazy hypothesis, and soundbites about rehabilitation revolutions and £46-pound-in-your-pocket, is an affront to those working in probation, and those who receive its services. <br /><br />netnippernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-3606785470590823612016-09-23T09:44:06.776+01:002016-09-23T09:44:06.776+01:00Prison = Profit, Probation = Profit, Poor Performa...Prison = Profit, Probation = Profit, Poor Performance = Profit. What a revolution!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-86163298130280462212016-09-23T09:22:28.574+01:002016-09-23T09:22:28.574+01:00If we ever do go back to public ownership I am hop...If we ever do go back to public ownership I am hoping we will not go back to how things were before the split in certain respects. I am hoping we would lose some of the less helpful aspects of how we were. There were things that held us back from actually enabling proper rehabilitation of service users coming our way. This does not mean I agreed with the privatisation. CJS should be public not subject to profit. <br />Our public probation officer personas tended to be slightly holier than thou, unable to see and admit that there by the grace of God go all of us. This was aided and abetted by the revolting Oasys assessment we are still forced to use, with its implied assumption of how a person should be in order for that person to pull themselves away from offending, that the acquisition of middle class souls is what we must judge people on. In a new public world we should do <br />more to campaign for other public services. Increasingly there is nowhere else for our service users to go. Advocacy should be a much more important and valued part of the job, and we should put much more pressure on our managers to give a strong and positive representation for our service users with other agencies and obv with NOMS. And when we have proof that they do we should back them up. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-70261079751757313092016-09-23T08:45:27.705+01:002016-09-23T08:45:27.705+01:00Is it true that the "rehabilitation revolutio...Is it true that the "rehabilitation revolution" is far from complete? And in what way is it far from complete? I am thinking this is it. What you see now is how it is going to be henceforth. Chaos and poor practice. But what is it the powes that be are expecting to find once the revolution is complete? Companies more adept at covering their tracks to make things look great even though they are not? These stats of performance measures which would enable the companies and the government to sing their mendacious harmonies together without the BBC suspecting a thing? Where are we expecting to be when that revolution is complete? I suspect that the mendacious harmonies is but stage one of the revolution. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8578343158425987632.post-58554898281351080622016-09-23T08:08:23.636+01:002016-09-23T08:08:23.636+01:00From BBC website:-
The government's promised ...From BBC website:-<br /><br />The government's promised "rehabilitation revolution" in England and Wales is "far from complete", an influential committee of MPs has said. There was "no clear picture" of how the probation system was performing, two years after changes had been announced, the Public Accounts Committee said. And it said IT problems had "undermined the pace of change".<br /><br />The government said it was committed to delivering the "vital reforms" and reducing re-offending rates. But in a report published on Friday, the Public Accounts Committee said: "The Ministry of Justice is now more than two years into these ambitious reforms, intended to reduce reoffending, but they are far from complete.<br /><br />"There is still no clear picture of how the new system is performing in important areas of the reforms." It said information and communications technology (ICT) systems in probation were "inefficient, unreliable and hard to use".<br />"Failure" to deal with these problems and "serious uncertainty over the impact on providers of lower than expected business volumes" had also "undermined the pace of change".<br /><br />The MPs also said it was unclear whether the extension of supervision after release to offenders sentenced for less than 12 months was "having the desired impact", saying almost 60% of people who received short prison sentences "reoffend within a year". The committee acknowledged the "scale of challenges" facing the MoJ in the coming years, particularly in delivering "ambitious" changes to the courts and prisons systems in England and Wales at a time of "increasingly constrained resources". <br /><br />"But it is crucial that the ministry completes the 'rehabilitation revolution' it has started and makes good on its promise to reduce the huge economic and human cost of reoffending," it said.<br /><br />Labour MP Meg Hillier, who chairs the committee, said there was a real danger the MoJ had "bitten off more than it can chew". "Ambition is one thing, but, as our committee continues to document across government, delivering positive results for taxpayers and society in general is quite another," she said. <br /><br />"'Revolution' is a potent word the government may regret using to describe its reforms to rehabilitation. "After two years, these are far from complete, and there remain serious risks to achieving the performance levels expected by the end of 2017."<br /><br />Justice Minister Sam Gyimah said: "We are carrying out a comprehensive review of the probation service to improve outcomes for offenders and communities. "Public protection is our top priority, and we will not hesitate to take the necessary action to make sure our vital reforms are being delivered to reduce reoffending, cut crime and prevent future victims."<br /><br />Commenting on the report, Liberal Democrat justice spokesman Jonathan Marks QC said that without his party in government to pursue reform "we have seen progress grind to a halt". He said the rates of reoffending were not only a "massive waste of public money" but "disastrous" for the public and bad for people "stuck in the cycle of reoffending". He also accused the government of inaction on reducing the prison population and said many prisons in England and Wales were "academies of crime". The Lib Dems wants to replace short jail terms with "robust" community sentences and "greater use of tagging" for sentences of less than 12 months.<br /><br />(Editors note - It was of course the Lib Dems who actively supported the Tories in destroying the Probation Service by the introduction of TR.)Jim Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00258147767051200157noreply@blogger.com