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SERIOUS VIOLENT AND SEXUAL OFFENDERS: THE USE OF RISK ASSESSMENT TOOLS IN SCOTLAND
ANNEX ONE
QUESTIONNAIRES AND ACCOMPANYING GUIDANCE USED IN THE AUDIT
Guidance to those responsible for completing the forms
SERIOUS SEXUAL AND VIOLENT OFFENDERS: AUDIT OF RISK ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS IN USE IN SCOTLAND
The University of Stirling and De Montfort University have been commissioned by the Scottish Executive Justice Department to undertake an analysis of risk assessment and recidivism among serious violent and sexual offenders in Scotland. The research has been commissioned following the recommendation of the MacLean Committee on Serious Violent and Sexual Offenders that more research was required on risk assessment and recidivism in relation to this group. As part of that analysis we are seeking information from organisations and individuals who are involved in assessing or managing the risk posed by serious violent or sexual offenders. The ultimate aim of the study is to inform better integration of different types of risk assessment and management.
The attached questionnaire is seeking information about the use of tools to assess risk among serious violent and sexual offenders in Scotland. The questionnaire forms the basis of an audit of risk assessment tools, by which we mean a survey aimed at establishing which tools are being used by relevant organisations and in what way. We are particularly interested in learning what tools are being used and how they are being used in different contexts: that is, in how they are being used in your organisation.
We are also, however, interested in the extent to which risk assessment tools have been validated. Validation means that the tool has been tested to determine how accurate it is at predicting the outcome it is intended to predict. Equally, we are interested in whether the tools are being used with the types of offenders in respect of whom they have been validated. This is of interest since it is important to get a sense of how robust risk assessments undertaken by organisations using these tools are likely to be. It may be that you are unable to provide responses to these questions, in which case we would ask you to indicate this in the appropriate places on the form.
We are also reviewing information about recidivism among serious violent and sexual offenders in the Scottish context. The review will consider the issues associated with assessing recidivism and aim to estimate the numbers of offenders in Scotland who pose a continuing high risk. To this end, the audit of risk assessment tools also contains a few questions aimed at estimating the numbers of serious and violent offenders who are currently known by the organisations who complete the audit. We appreciate that this information is likely to an approximate estimate and for this reason are also seeking some information as to the basis on which the estimate was made.
Completion of the audit
Your organisation has identified you as someone who has knowledge of the use of risk assessment instruments with serious violent and sexual offenders and who can therefore provide the information required. Please complete the forms enclosed with regard to your particular area of responsibility: if risk assessments of this kind are undertaken in a number of contexts or by different professional groups, then it is likely that your organisation will have identified others who can complete a separate set of forms in relation to their specific areas of responsibility. Again, we should stress that we are interested in what risk assessment tools are being used and how they are being used in your organisation.
The audit consists of two parts. The first part is seeking summary information about the range of tools in use in your organisation. The second part is seeking information about the use of each of these tools. In this part of the audit a separate audit form should be completed for each tool in use. Most of the questions simply require you to indicate which of a number of options applies and to provide more detailed information only if the circumstances that apply have not been covered by the existing options. Since we are asking you only to complete one summary form, it is important that this form and the completed audit forms for the individual tools are returned together. It would be helpful if they could be returned to the University of Stirling by 18 January 2002.
The audit form can be copied as required. If you would prefer to complete the form electronically, we can arrange for you to do so. Please e-mail me at g.c.mcivor@stir.ac.uk and I will arrange for one to be e-mailed to you.
We hope that the form will be relatively easy to complete. However, if you have any questions about completion of the form, please do not hesitate to contact me at the above e-mail address or telephone 01786 467724.
Yours sincerely
Professor Gill McIvor
Social Work Research Centre
University of Stirling
Stirling FK9 4LA
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