« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
National Objectives for Social Work Services in the Criminal Justice System: Standards - Probation
CHAPTER 4: PHASES OF PROBATION SUPERVISION
INITIAL PHASE OF PROBATION SUPERVISION
Preliminary Considerations
Pre-Sentence
47.Consideration of suitability for probation must always be undertaken as part of the preparation of a full SER along with consideration of other options.
48.Where the author of an SER intends to recommend probation, management must be alerted and confirmation obtained that the case can be allocated. At this point either the author of the SER or another named social worker must be designated as available to supervise the order should the court accept the recommendation.
49.The author of the SER is responsible for preparing the initial action plan and for consulting with the Supervising Officer where known. He/she must explain to the offender what probation will entail so that the offender may give or withhold his/her informed consent to the making of a probation order.
At Sentence
50. Section 228 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 requires the court to confirm the availability of probation supervision before making a probation order and authors of SERs must make clear in their reports whether or not the order can be supervised. There is a legal duty on the court to explain the requirements of the probation order to the offender and to seek his/her consent before making it (section 228(5)).
51.It is open to the court, where there may be concern about a particular case, to request a progress report when the order is made. The circumstances in which the court might request a progress report, the timescales for such reports, and their content should be discussed at local level as part of the ongoing liaison procedures between courts and local authorities.
Post Sentence
52.The initial phase of supervision is the period of 3 months after the probation order is made.
53.Social workers supervising probation orders have duties and responsibilities both to the court and to the offender. The court will expect that the supervisor will meet his/her obligations with regards to the proposed plan for supervision and that the standards set out in this document will be adhered to. The offender is entitled to except that the supervisor will meet his/her obligations to him/her and he/she must know what to do to complete the order.
54.The following standards apply to all the types of probation order made by the court and cover the initial phase of supervision. They are set out under the headings of procedures, the content of supervision, and frequency of contact.
Procedures
55.Arrangements must be made to ensure that copies of the probation order are made available by the clerk of the court to the social work department within one working day of the order having been made. In smaller courts where there is no social work unit this may require posting the order within one working day.
56.The order will state that the Director of Social Work / Chief Social Work Officer of his/her nominee will supervise the order.
57.Wherever possible an offender placed on probation should be seen before leaving the court building and told the name of his/her supervisor and when and where to report. When the court has attached an additional requirement which must be put into immediate effect eg. a requirement to live in designated accommodation, the offender must be seen immediately after the order is made either by the social worker who will supervise the order or a court officer to ensure that the arrangements are implemented.
58.A copy of the probation order must be given to the offender by the supervising social worker or his/her substitute within one week of the date on which it was received from the sentencing court. The supervisor should explain in detail the requirements of the order and the standards which will apply. The supervisor must check that the offender understands his/her obligations and rights. The offender must sign and date the back of 2 copies of the order as evidence that he/she understands it and the copies must be countersigned by the supervising social worker. One copy must be retained by the offender.
59.The offender must be notified of any subsequent change of Supervising Officer. This should be done within one week of the decision to change.
The Content of Supervision
60.The initial phase of supervision is critical in establishing a sound working relationship with the offender. The supervisor is responsible for confirming with offender the working methods which will be used to assist him/her to confront his/her offending behaviour and for setting out the extent of oversight/control which the order will incorporate. The supervisor is also responsible for the smooth running of the arrangements made with people and organisations who may be involved in implementing the action plan and is accountable for his/her line manager for this work. The supervisor should demonstrate a concern to make probation a positive and worthwhile experience and the approach should be encouraging, consistent, and practical. Wherever possible the offender's strengths and motivation should be built in.
61.During the initial phase of supervision the supervisor must:
61.1confirm and if necessary make more specific the action plan outlined in the SER, paying particular attention to identifying specific tasks and responsibilities to be undertaken and setting out both the required frequency of contact and the venue at which the contact will take place. Where the supervisor has not prepared the SER and has therefore not been responsible for drawing up the action plan outlined in it he/she should consult the author of the SER wherever practicable;
61.2make all the necessary arrangements with people and organisations who may be involved in implementing the action plan. This must include agreeing with those concerned how they will contribute to the formal reviews of progress which will be undertaken with the offender during the currency of the order;
61.3explain the sanctions which pertain in the event of non compliance;
61.4indicate what the supervision is committed to doing during the initial phase of supervision;
61.5put the action plan into effect and establish targets to be achieved within the first 3 months of supervision;
61.6carry out at least one formal review, in which the offender should participate, which is recorded and countersigned by both the offender and the supervisor's line manager. The review(s) should establish what progress has been made towards meeting the targets identified in the action plan and identify tasks and goals for the next period of supervision. It should also set out both the required frequency of contact and the venue at which the contact will take place. This and further formal reviews must be recorded on the case file and countersigned by the supervisor's first line manager. For their part first line managers must review regularly the progress of each case with the Supervising Officer and attend any formal review meetings where this is desirable in the interests of good case management. They should normally always attend whenever requested to do so by the offender.
Frequency of Contact
62.Courts making a probation order will expect that the offender will be seen promptly and regularly. Whilst frequency of contact in itself will not guarantee a successful outcome it is a necessary precondition. During the first 3 months of supervision the following standards regarding the frequency of contact must be adhered to:
62.1offenders sentenced to probation must be seen by their designated supervisor as soon as possible and not later than one week after the order is made, whether or not the order has been received from the court. Where the designated supervisor is unavoidably absent, the offender must be seen by a covering social worker (see paragraph 53);
62.2the designated supervisor or his/her substitute must meet the offender at least weekly during the first month of supervision and, where the action plan identifies the need for close personal supervision at least weekly for the following 2 months. In other cases the offender must be seen at least fortnightly. Attendance at any specific programmes identified in the action plan aimed at dealing with problems and issues associated with offending behaviour are additional to this basic requirement and the supervisor must make arrangements to ensure that he/she knows whether or not the offender has attended and participated as agreed;
62.3the choice of venue for meeting with the offender will depend in large measure on the agreed action plan. However, during the first 3 months of supervision at least 2 home visits should normally be made unless there are particular reasons for not doing so.
THE MIDDLE PHASE OF PROBATION SUPERVISION
63.The middle phase of supervision is the stage which should mark the consolidation of efforts to address problems and issues associated with offending behaviour and the beginning of work towards termination of the order.
64.Whilst a period of 3 months can be designated as the length of the initial phase of supervision, it is more difficult to provide a specific guideline in respect of the length of the middle phase. Probation orders vary in length, and the time which it may take to consolidate work begun in the initial phase will differ according to the individual under supervision.
65.A particular issue to be taken into account in considering the middle phase of supervision is the need to distinguish between the frequency and content of the contact which may be required to continue work on problems related to offending behaviour, and the frequency and contact required to ensure that the court's expectations regarding the extend of oversight and control are met.
The Content of Supervision
66During the middle phase of supervision the supervisor must:
66.1pursue the implementation of the plan for supervision agreed as a result of the review at 3 months identifying specific tasks and responsibilities and setting out both the required frequency of contact and the venue(s);
66.2carry out a further formal review of progress at 6 months;
66.3in the case of 2 and 3 year order carry out further formal reviews at least every 6 months as a basis for reviewing progress, identifying tasks and responsibilities for the next period of supervision, and setting out the required frequency of contact and they venue(s).
The Mid-Point of Supervision
67.When the halfway point in the probation order has been reached supervisors should consider, in the light of the progress made by the offender, whether there is scope to make use of Schedule 6 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 which provides for the discharge and amendment of probation orders. Probation orders may be discharged or amended by the court on the application of either the supervisor or the offender. Where there is an application to amend the order by adding or substituting requirements the offender must be cited to attend court and his/her consent must be obtained to the addition/substitution.
68.An application for the early discharge of an order on the ground of good progress is appropriate where the offender has not re-offended during the currency of the order, has successfully completed the tasks association with the Action Plan, and when no further work on issued associated with offending behaviour is considered necessary. While predicting the risk of future offending is difficult, supervisors may also wish to comment on changes in the offender's behaviour or social circumstances which would appear to render this less likely. Where an application for early discharge is made it should also indicate to the court the frequency of contact which will be maintained during the final phase of the order if an application for early discharge is not accepted.
69.An application for the amendment of the order by deleting a requirement will reflect the view either that continued assistance and control is necessary but that it no longer needs to be reinforced by the attachment of an additional requirement or that the additional required has proved unworkable.
70.The option of applying to the court to amend the order by adding or substituting a requirement acknowledges the possibility that circumstances and problems may arise during the currency of the order which may best be dealt with by the attachment or substitution of an additional requirement. An application of this kind must be discussed and if possible agreed with the offender. It should be noted that it is always possible for supervisors to apply to the court for an amendment of this kind at any point in the order if, in their professional judgement they consider it necessary.
71.The supervisor should confirm and if possible agree with the offender a plan for the final phase of supervision which takes account of the response of the court to any application for amendment of the order.
Frequency of Contact
72.The frequency of contact during this and the final phase of supervision should never be less than monthly and in many cases will be more frequent. Attendance at specific programmes linked to the action plan are additional to this requirement.
THE FINAL PHASE OF SUPERVISION
73.This phase of supervision involves working towards the termination of and terminating the order. Its content and related tasks must be considered in the light of any decisions following the preparation and submission of the mid-term report. If the court agrees with a recommendation to discharge the order early, the supervisor will immediately move to undertake the necessary tasks associated with termination. If early discharge is either not recommended to the court or a recommendation is refused, the final phase will be longer and will incorporate more intensive work towards termination.
Content
74.Work during this phase of supervision should provide an opportunity to establish whether new behaviours, skills and motivations can be sustained after an action plan has been followed through and it should concentrate in particular on both the extent to which the offender can apply what he/she has learned about his/her offending behaviour to situations which might provoke it in the future and the extent to which resources can be identified and used which will continue to support the offender in the community after the order is terminated.
75During the final phase of supervision the supervisor must:
75.1implement the plan agreed as part of the formal mid-term review and any associated application or report to the court. This will identify specific tasks and responsibilities to be undertaken and will set out both the frequency and venue(s) of contact. (Where an application for early discharge of the order has been successful proceed immediately to paragraphs 70.4 and 72);
75.2consult others involved in working with the offender about the best ways in which the offender may be assisted to live within the laws once the period of supervision is terminated;
75.3consider with the offender how he/she is going to sustain himself/herself in the community without re-offending after the order is terminated;
75.4conduct a formal review with the offender at the end of the order making specific reference to what the offender has achieved and the development of new skills and coping mechanisms which may enable him/her to live in the community without re-offending;
75.5make sure that the offender is advised of the provisions of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 as they apply to him/her.
Frequency of Contact
76.The frequency of contact during this phase of supervision should never be less than one contact a month. Attendance at specific programmes linked to the action plan are additional to this requirement.
Final Report to the Court
77.A final report to the court should be prepared and sent to the clerk of the court holding the probation order no later than 2 weeks from the date the order is terminated. The report should briefly summarise the progress made on completing the action plan and should include any relevant information about the offender's conduct during the course of the order.
« Previous | Contents | Next »