I wouldn't normally post at this time on a Friday, but such is the level of concern regarding the pay offer that the comment thread has grown too long and getting unmanageable. Of course at exactly the same time as an offer widely felt to be 'insulting', we have an existential threat to probation itself and here we see what the Chief Inspector Justin Russell thinks, published today:-
The ‘voice of the Probation Service’ must continue to be heardThe month of August brought with it the publication of our latest round of local probation service inspection reports, this time in the West Midlands (summarised here within our letter to the regional Probation Service – West Midlands (PDF, 334 kB)) – the fourth probation region we have inspected since unification of the probation service. The results continue to be disappointing. Of the three probation delivery units (PDUs) we inspected, we rated two as ‘Inadequate’ and one as ‘Requires improvement. This means that of the nine PDUs inspected since unification, two thirds have received the lowest possible overall rating of ‘Inadequate’ which is deeply concerning. A more detailed analysis of over 500 individual cases we’ve inspected across these areas, shows that at least 59 per cent are being assessed as insufficient against at least one of our quality standards – with the most common area of weakness continuing to be the assessment and management of risks of harm. In my Speech to the Westminster Legal Policy Forum (PDF, 187 kB) conference on 05 July I set out some of the reasons for this, but widespread staff shortages at all key operational grades and the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on interventions and key services for people on probation are both having an enormous impact on the quality of supervision we are seeing.
Given these unprecedented challenges, a relentless focus on effective practice and strong and visible leadership of the service will be crucial to recovery in the coming years. So, it is essential that the move to a new leadership structure in HMPPS which merges responsibilities for prisons and probation within two Chief Executive Office (CEO) and Director General Operations roles does not threaten this recovery. In the past, I have welcomed the creation of a separate DG Probation role within HMPPS as giving the service the visible and energetic leadership and higher profile it lacked under the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). Whilst it is positive that Amy Rees will be bringing her four years of experience in that role to her new CEO posting, past experience with NOMS is that the day to day operational and political demands of the prison service can all too easily distract focus from the Probation Service and its particular (and very different) needs. I know that strong concerns have been raised about these changes by NAPO and the Probation Institute and it’s important that the voice and interests of the Probation Service continue to get the leadership attention they so desperately need.
Justin Russell
HM Chief Inspector of Probation
What HMIP needs to say is abandon One HMPPS and put Sonia Flynn, a qualified Probation Officer, in charge of probation as Director General with a remit which include an ethos building probation positively and of Advise, Assist and Befriend.
ReplyDeletePre TR we were a gold standard service. Since then change has been relentless through TR and unification. Call it as it is, but the bottom line is we need to separate probation from prisons and the civil service before there is nothing left.
Put aside the wasteful prison building and IT projects there is enough to enable a decent pay offer for probation staff, and then to probation time to revive as a single entity.
Instead of common sense we get Amy Rees Director General HMPPS who will push through this “merger” because she is a prison officer / governor and insults probation with;
“If this pay offer is rejected at ballot, we will revert to implementing a single year pay deal in line with the civil service pay remittance guidance for the 22/23 year”. … “we are confident that we have secured a good and fair pay offer for probation service staff”.
Sonia Flynn is a part of the problem,not the solution. Just read her dismissal of the complaints from staff about not giving recommendations in parole.
DeleteWhere can it be found? Can you post it please/?
DeleteIt was on the intranet weeks ago, can't get it on my phone.
DeleteOverall Sonia Flynn has been measured. Put her at the helm and you’ll see the difference having a probation officer in charge of probation.
Deletesonia flynn has been measured - aye, for a bigger office in hmpps; to the best of my knowledge (prove me wrong, please) she has never fought to protect probation staff, probation pay or probation terms & conditions in her influential, well-paid roles.
DeleteNo guarantee of success believing a po is your solution is grossly bias for the wrong reasons. It does not matter who is in post they are there because they follow orders and will manage us aggressively .
DeleteWonder what all the unions think of this ?
DeleteIt clearly makes a difference when the head of HMPPS is a prison officer. Just like when there were no Probation senior officials in NOMS. Both organisations decimated probation.
DeleteThis pay offer is mustard. I’m well chuffed with what I’m getting. I’m signing it. Thanks to the brass that sorted it.
ReplyDeleteNow that all comments are moderated it raises several moral dilemma's.
DeleteYou say this in jest, but this is pretty much my view and that of everyone else I've spoken to about it.
DeleteClearly the trolls and mischief-makers are back!
DeleteJim just wants moaning on here. Why else would he/she moderate comments. I like the deal. It works for me so I should be able to say so. I’m chuffed with what brass have done for me on this deal.
Delete20.29. It is a good deal but I’m not signing it after my SPO told everyone to sign it so we get money before Christmas.
DeleteThere are indeed managers pressuring their staff to sign up for the deal as many times as they can even if they are not union members. Be interesting if more people sign than the current union headcount. What a shambles. Vote No for the continued existence of probation. Interesting that if the services are merged into one organisation then probation staff can presumably join the POA but lose the right to strike.
DeleteI’ve not heard of any Probation managers or spo’s pressuring staff for or against. Most spo’s I know, if not all, are against the pay deal.
DeleteI know many who have and who will vote Against it . I can’t believe Amy Rees made that threat - reduces the power of unions
ReplyDeleteWhere is the voice of the probation unions? Cut the membership fee to a £1 introductory offer. Get every probation worker signed up ready to strike. HMPPS would fold in seconds. Look at what’s happened with the Scottish bin strike.
ReplyDeleteI seem to recall Sonia Flynn pushing an SPO member under the bus in a high profile SFO - Leicester I think, and doing similar on more than one occasion.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Ms Flynn is part of the problem. She has had nothing to say about any re-structure or anything much else and her stance appears to be, “ keep sending the money.”
Under Amy Rees there’ll be no bus to be pushed from, just a forgotten void where probation used to exist !
DeleteLet’s not quibble over figureheads. The ‘voice of the Probation Service’ must continue to be heard.
DeleteAmy Rees was appointed the interim Director General of Probation and Wales in January 2019. She is responsible for the leadership of the probation service, managing the deployment of rehabilitation services across both custody and community, with accountability for public protection protocols across both public and private providers.
Her previous posts include Executive Director for HM Prison and Probation Service in Wales, where she was responsible for both the prison and probation system in Wales, and was the lead interface with Welsh Government on behalf of the Ministry of Justice. In addition, Amy was responsible for the wider HMPPS strategy and whole system development England and Wales.
Prior to this, Amy was Principal Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Justice, where she was responsible for all business with which the Ministerial Team dealt with and had overall management responsibility for Private Office Directorate at the Ministry of Justice.
Amy has led on two priority programmes at the Ministry of Justice, both of which delivered significant changes and major savings, whilst maintaining complex delivery regimes. Firstly, as Head of Workforce Strategy, where she was responsible for designing and leading a comprehensive restructure of Public Sector Prisons. Then as a Deputy Director on the Transforming Rehabilitation Programme, responsible for designing and delivering the organisational restructure of the Probation Service and Through the Gate services.
Amy started her career in the Prison Service and has worked at several establishments including HMP Lewes, High Down and Bristol, before being appointed Governor at HMP Brixton in 2008. Under her leadership, Brixton made huge strides, this was evidenced by the significant reduction in Prisoner self-harm, staff sickness and drug test failure rates. In November 2010 Amy won both the Civil Service Award for leadership and the overall Cabinet Secretary Award for the changes and improvements made to the regime at HMP Brixton.
https://modernising-justice.co.uk/speaker/amy-rees/
DeleteLeadership with humanity
Posted by: Amy Rees, Posted on: 9 July 2015 - Categories: Leading and managing change, Our Civil Service
Amy Rees, now Principal Private Secretary (PPS) at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), won the 2010 Civil Service Award for Leadership as governor of Brixton Prison, a role for which she also received the coveted Cabinet Secretary’s Award. She talks about her time at Brixton and what the awards meant to her.
https://civilservice.blog.gov.uk/2015/07/09/leadership-with-humanity/
[Justice Secy in 2015 was Gove]
So a prison officer with no knowledge of probation. Totally the wrong person for probation.
DeleteI can’t see that humanity. And clearly the cv is flawed if on Rees’ watch her mere 4 years in the job includes Probation unification which was a shambles and HMPPS is about to undergo the most stupid merger (aka Probation takeover).
Delete“we are confident that we have secured a good and fair pay offer for probation service staff”.
So there we have it, HMIP are now feeling uneasy. Aby second now, as I have oft predicted, top brass will catch up with reality and acknowledge that the structure and design is irredeemably flawed. In double quick time we are back to TR: political meddling, trashing by Tory political agenda, weak leadership, although now leadership isnt weak, it just isnt Probation. "Whilst it is positive that Amy Rees will be bringing her four years of experience in that role to her new CEO posting,..." That went well then? She is not and has never been Probation, all that top down command and control, the micromanagement, the tone-deafness, blindness to the social home of our profession, I rest my case, we really need to get out of this PPlace
ReplyDeletehttps://publicappointments.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/appointment/prisons-and-probation-ombudsman-pat160019/
ReplyDeleteProject Lead, One HMPPS Programme
ReplyDeletehttps://justicejobs.tal.net › download_file_opp
PDF
13 Apr 2022 — The national salary range is £54,599 -. £65,518, London salary range is £56,871 -. £69,666. Your salary will be dependent on your base location.
Presumably no-one spotted these job adverts (3 x secondment opportunities) at the beginning of the year:
Delete"The HMPPS vision is based on working together to protect the public and help people lead law-abiding and positive lives. Whether staff work in prisons, probation, youth custody or HQ, we share the same vocational commitment to change lives. We are ‘One HMPPS’."
To do this thinking, we are setting up a One HMPPS Programme. The programme will work with staff across the agency to develop proposals for a new service delivery model that:
Allows for a “whole sentence” approach to the way we deliver our services, ensuring offender management services are better joined up across the whole of the offender journey;
Empowers decision making at a regional level, enabling our leaders to ensure that the services they offer are tailored to the needs of and improve outcomes for users of our services; and
Supports the sharing of resources, knowledge, information and skills through a new organisational structure that enables better outcomes and provides value for money.
We believe successful delivery of these objectives is critical in supporting the agency to meet the department’s key strategic priorities - to improve public protection and to reduce reoffending.
Closing Date: 19/04/2022, 23:55 hours.
"To do this thinking..." ?!?
All these jobs advertised under the banner of "One HMPPS" and **no-one** saw it coming?
DeleteBand 6/HEO Project and Programme Support Officer, One HMPPS Programme
There are a number of posts available across the following workstreams:
HQ Review - This workstream will consider how HMPPS HQ can support front line operations in the important work they do.
Regional Model Design - This workstream will work with others across HMPPS to design new ways of working which will empower decision-making closer to front line delivery, allowing regions to better cater their services to the needs of their local cohort and enable a “whole sentence” approach to the way we operate.
Strategy and Business case Development - This workstream will cut across the whole programme and lean out into the organisation, ensuring that the strategic direction is aligned with the One HMPPS vision, strategy and objectives.
Stakeholder Engagement and Comms - This workstream will focus on delivering internal and external communications for the One HMPPS Programme, ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of current, planned and future communications activity raising awareness of the programme and its key deliverables.
"This is an exciting opportunity to get in on
the ground floor of a fast moving and far-reaching new programme that will offer ample opportunity to work across boundaries to design and implement change, and gain a unique insight into how large government agencies operate. I look forward to working with you!"
Amy Rees
Programme Sponsor
Director General for Probation and Women,
HMPPS.
"Please note if you are successful in your application your sensitive personal data will be used as part of the on-boarding process to build your employee record."
Interviews: Week Commencing 9 May 2022
Band 8/SEO Project Delivery Manager, One HMPPS Programme
DeleteAcross the programme, the Band 8 Project Delivery Managers will work together with the Programme leads to deliver this high profile and transformative programme.
Band 9 (Grade 7 equivalent) Project Lead,
DeleteOne HMPPS Programme
There are a number of posts available...
So how many NEW posts has One HMPPS generated? And Napo/Unison/no-one at all saw this coming until Strong White unleashed the news last week?
How far up one's own back passage does one's head have to be?
All of these job adverts are online. I'm not probation or civil service; I just used a basic search engine & had a look around.
Political meddling is already here One Hmpps is the plan to eradicate Probation, let’s have stout no nonsenses prison governors in charge of us sandal wearing,lentil chewing,lefty’s, they will show us what’s what...the true face of cruel Toryism coming to a town near you soon.....and once we are under their cosy little banner guess what.....we will be essential to the running of the country ( aka supporting the creaking edifice of capitalism) and prison officers / correctional services will no longer have the luxury of withdrawing your labour,the battle for a pay increase is a just and worthy one but the scrapping of One Hmpps is the fifth column being created under our very noses all while the battle for a decent standard of living is being fought....a clever move MOJ but you pay peanuts.......
ReplyDeleteThat is a very strong statement from Justin Russell and will be heard deep in the bowels of the MoJ. Who would have thought that it is the inspectorate and the probation institute leading the fight back against a prison service takeover. All probation staff who are union members need to reject the insulting pay offer. This will trigger a ballot for industrial action. Vote for it and call the MoJs bluff. Let’s join with the lawyers for some coordinated action and shut the court system and probation down. We should have done it on probation day when the fakers knew they were about to announce the end of probation. The announcement of that news was conveniently delayed and they were only forced to make announcements because the news leaked out. They were taking the pee asking us to play games whilst they plotted against us. Let’s have a mass demonstration.
ReplyDeleteYou cant join with lawyers or anyone else, it is secondary picketing and against the law.
DeleteI’ve known members of other unions stand in support with RMT and CWU
DeleteThank you Justin Russell. We’ve now heard strong opposition from HMI Probation and the Probation Institute. Russell Webster has opposed the One HMPPS merger (aka Probation takeover) too. Now we need to hear from the Butler Trust, the probation unions AND Sonia Crozier Flynn, Chief Probation Officer.
ReplyDeleteCrozier Flynn Dolittle is on-board with Rees, otherwise she wouldn't be heading up the faux probation service.
DeleteThe unions are silent (again): "er, um, er..."
And that’s exactly why the unions must call her out.
DeleteNot just Sonia Flynn, that Amy “we are confident that we have secured a good and fair pay offer for probation service staff” Rees needs to be publicly called to account too. Let’s stop being duped by her dressed down shirt wearing we’re all the same image. This ruthless heartless CEO and former prison officer has marched through the ranks of the MoJ and is stepping on the backs of us all in the process.
DeleteAnd stop dropping the POA into the conversation as they’re not interested in probation. The prison service will benefit from her appointment, the Probation takeover and the crappy pay deal, but we will not.