Information Requests

Here we have the first of two opportunities to share information useful to the work of probation. There's an opportunity to join a focus group:-

Invitation to Join a Focus Group

Introduction

The purpose of the 2022 CEP audit is to examine the caseload and workload of probation staff across Europe. The audit objectives are to explore:

• How probation bodies across Europe deal with an increasing caseload
• What measures are taken to prevent an excessive workload
• What steps can be taken to encourage national jurisdictions to increase the number of probation staff in order to fulfil the aims of probation.

The audit is being undertaken by Dr Jane Dominey and Ms Vesna Zelić. You can contact them with any questions by emailing.

Invitation to Join a Focus Group

The audit will use focus groups as one way of gathering data about caseload and workload.

Two focus groups are planned. One on Monday 19 December at 14hr (CET) and the other on Tuesday 20 December at 10hr (CET). They will take place via Zoom and in English. Each group will last no more than 90 minutes. We will send you the focus group questions on Thursday 15 December.

We want to invite probation practitioners and managers from across Europe to join a focus group. We are particularly looking for focus group participants who manage caseload and workload issues in their organisation. As well as staff responsible for delivering probation services, this could also include staff who are responsible for measuring and managing workload.

We plan to recruit focus group members from organisations across Europe and from a wide range of organisations.

To Get Involved in a Focus Group

To join a focus group please email Ms Vesna Zelić by 15th December.

Please let us know:

• Your name, your role and your organisation.
• Whether you are able to join the group on 19 December or 20 December.

If you would like to join a focus group but can not attend on either of these dates please let us know. It is possible that there will be a January focus group and, if there is, we will contact you about this.

We will also be arranging interviews early next year. If you are interested in being interviewed but are not able to join a focus group, please let us know.

For the audit to be useful and relevant, it is important to hear many experiences and opinions. We are sure you recognise the importance of including a wide range of views.

Thank you for your interest and your participation!

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An opportunity to take part in research:-

An exploration of the reasons that probation staff voluntarily leave the probation service

PARTICIPANT INFORMATION

Study Title: An exploration of the reasons that probation staff voluntarily leave the probation service

Faculty Ethics Committee Ref No: FHSS 2022-048

Name and contact of researchers: Laura Haggar and Michelle McDermott

Invitation:

We are researchers from the School of Criminology & Criminal Justice at the University of Portsmouth, and are conducting research into the reasons that individuals have voluntarily left probation practice to gain insight into staff attrition.

We are seeking responses from ex-practitioners who meet the following inclusion criteria:

Have previously worked in operational probation roles (grades 3-5) in England and Wales

AND

Have voluntarily resigned from the probation service since May 2019

AND

Are not currently employed by HMPPS

If you meet this criteria we would like to invite you to take part in this research study by completing this anonymous online survey. This should take no more than 10 minutes to complete. The survey questions will include some demographic information as well as questions about the role that you held in probation. These questions are asked to identify whether there are any trends in the responses. The next set of questions will be open-ended, and will ask questions related to your reasons for leaving probation practice and your current situation. Please do not disclose identifying information and please ensure you only share information that you feel comfortable sharing. We recognise that there will be a range of experiences affecting decisions to leave and so please only take part if you feel comfortable exploring these issues. If any questions cause concern or distress, please either skip the question or exit the survey.

The responses are entirely confidential and, should you wish to participate, you can withdraw at any point until the survey responses are submitted. Due to anonymity, we will be unable to retrieve responses to be withdrawn after submission. Data will be stored securely on the researchers shared drive.

The data will be analysed to identify themes in the reasons for voluntary resignations. It is intended that the findings of this research will be disseminated via journal publication, professional networks and academic arenas. Where appropriate the data may be made open access. Verbatim quotes will be used to construct the analysis.

The researchers are also looking for participants to be interviewed about their experiences. If you would be interested in taking part in an interview please use the link on the final page of the survey to register your interest. Should you choose to participate you will be asked to complete a consent form and attend an online interview at a mutually convenient time.

The research has received ethical approval via the University of Portsmouth Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences ethics committee. Should you have any concerns about the research please contact (see details via link).

Thank you for taking the time to read this participant information. Should you have any questions please do email the researchers:

Laura Haggar 
Michelle McDermott