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National Objectives for Social Work Services in the Criminal Justice System: Standards - Community Service
CHAPTER 3: ORGANISING WORK PLACEMENTS
9.Community Service is a non-custodial penalty which requires the offender to perform unpaid work.
10.Community Service should present a challenge to the offender. The punitive element in the penalty is contained in the time which offenders must devote the Community Service work, in the essential disciplines of regular attendance, prompt timekeeping, and satisfactory work performance, and in the prompt application of disciplinary procedures for non-compliance.
11.The work undertaken should be seen by both the community and the offender to be constructive and enable the offender to make reparation to the community for the offence.
12.One objective of Community Service Schemes is to assist the offender to complete the required hours of work to a satisfactory standard.
13.Work placements must not be used which are likely to deprive others of paid employment
14.Work placements available to Community Service Schemes must be reviewed and re-assessed at least annually. A record must be kept of the date and contents of this annual assessment.
15.Each Community Service Scheme must provide placements for offenders with special needs, and written details of what special needs are catered for should be provided.
16.Each Community Service Scheme must provide placements which can accommodate offenders with inescapable commitments relating to paid employment, education and domestic circumstances.
17.Community Service work placements fall into 2 main categories: those offered and supervised by outside organisations and agencies, and those organised by local Community Service Schemes themselves. In general, individual placements fall into the first category and group placements into the second. Whatever the type of placement, there are standards which should apply to the work undertaken by local Community Service Schemes in negotiating and supporting placements with outside organisations and in organising and supporting placements themselves. Outside organisations who contract with Community Service Schemes for placements should also be able to meet agreed standards.
18. Equal Opportunities Statement
18.1Managers of Community Service Schemes must seek to ensure that they have a range of placements which may be made available to offenders irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, disability, age or religion. In particular attention should be given to ensuring the availability of suitable placements for offenders with particular domestic or child care responsibilities (see paras 16, 25.8, 113.4). Managers must also seek to ensure that decisions about placement allocation are not based on any preconceived notions which may be held by individual placement staff about suitability of certain types of work for one or other gender.
18.2when an offender is placed in a setting in which most other workers or offenders are of the opposite gender or from a different ethnic group or religion etc., the placement supervisor must ensure that the offender is not subject to any form of harassment from other workers or offenders. Community Service staff must actively discourage sexist, racist, sectarian or other offensive comments or actions from offenders and staff whilst on their Community Service placements.
18.3.if an offender persists is making offensive comments he or she should be issued with a written instruction forbidding such comments and must be advised that failure to comply with that written instruction could be treated as grounds for breach.
19. The Obligations of Community Service Officers towards Placements
19.1Community Service by its very nature is not a low risk activity. Prediction of re-offending risk is difficult and while expectations have to be realistic, the principal consideration in determining the suitability of an offender to undertake a particular placement must be the physical safety of any person residing or working at the placement.
19.2offenders involved in a group placement generally pose a higher risk than singleton placements. Careful consideration must be given to any increased risk to a placements posed by both the number of offenders present at one time and the total number of offenders involved in completing the task. Every reasonable step must be taken to ensure that the level of supervision provided is sufficient to avoid physical risk to any person at the placement.
19.3the previous offending history of offenders must inform risk assessment decisions. Offenders who have a previous custodial disposal for violence should be assessed particularly carefully before being found suitable for such a placement. The assessment of risk being informed by previous offending history, the nature of the placement and degree of supervision given, and the vulnerability of the recipient.
19.4offenders who have a previous custodial disposal for dishonesty should not necessarily be excluded from undertaking placements at residential premises. The assessment of any risk posed by this category of offender must be informed by previous offending history, the nature of the placement and the vulnerability of the recipient.
The Obligations of Community Service Officers Towards Organisations Providing Placements
20.Community Service Officers have the following obligations towards organisations providing placements:-
20.1to explain the nature of Community Service and the obligations it places on offenders.
20.2to consider the views of the organisations about those offenders who are best suited to work in the organisation, and, after full discussion, to respect any restrictions or special requirements (other than inconsistent with the equal opportunities statement (para 18)).
20.3to offer relevant information about the offender's background and history of offending, including the nature of the current offence, and to satisfy themselves that this information will be used appropriately by the organisation.
20.4to agree arrangements for the supervision of offenders placed on Community Service. These arrangements should both confirm to national standards regarding regular attendance, prompt timekeeping, and satisfactory work performance, and take account of any additional local standards.
20.5to outline the nature and extent of the assistance which the organisation may expect from the Community Service staff.
20.6to provide rapid follow-up when problems arise during the work placement relating to attendance, behaviour, or work performance, both at the request of the agency or where concern is expressed by another party.
20.7to be responsible for all disciplinary measures, including initiating court proceedings.
20.8to avoid where possible the involvement in court proceedings of outside organisations offering placements, especially where breach procedures are initiated.
20.9to ensure that only those organisations which meet the obligations outlined in 21. Below are used for Community Service placements.
The Obligations of Organisations Offering Placements to Community Service Schemes
21all organisations offering Community Service placements for offenders must meet the following basic requirements:
21.1inform the Community Service Scheme how the organisation propose to deal with the relevant and often confidential information about the offender's background, offending history and current offence, supplied by the Community Service Officer. Such information must only be shared with staff or volunteers when it is considered that it is necessary in the interests of:
21.1.1assessing any possible risk which may result from the placement of an offender;
21.1.2assisting the process of "matching" the offender with a particular work placement;
21.1.3complying with the general working philosophy of the organisation regarding the sharing of personal information.
The Community Service Officer must be satisfied that personal information about the offender is shared on a strict "need to know" basis related to the above criteria.
21.2apply to the same standards to their working relationship with offenders as they apply to their relationships with other members of staff or volunteers.
21.3ensure the availability of sufficient work to occupy the offender during agreed work sessions
21.4ensure that, in order to apply agreed national and local standards of attendance, behaviour and performance to Community Service work, the following procedures are adopted:
21.4.1all absences and instances of significant misconduct should be reported the Community Service staff without delay, normally within one working day;
21.4.2complete and return an attendance sheet detailing hours of work undertaken for each session on a weekly basis to the Community Service office. This sheet must include details of times of arrival and departure, the hours credited, details of tasks undertaken and a comment on work performance. All absences and instances of significant misconduct must be noted. Each attendance sheet must be countersigned by the supervisor on the site and, wherever possible, by the offender;
21.4.3adhere to all health and safety regulations;
21.4.4refuse any requests for loans from the offender.
The Choice of Work Placements
22.Each Community Service Scheme must make available:
22.1placements across a wide range of work settings and types of work;
22.2a range of individual and group work placements;
22.3work which is available throughout the week, including evenings and weekends;
22.4work which is available throughout the geographical area covered by the Scheme.
23Provision of the above should:
23.1maximise the range and number of offenders with whom the Scheme can deal;
23.2enable Community Service Officers to match the offenders' capacities and interests with the available work;
23.3harness the potential of local community organisations and members to make placements available and to be involved in supervising them.
23.4give preference to placements where the work involved maximises contact between the offender and the beneficiary of the service.
24.Each Community Service Scheme must provide both group and individual placements. A group placement is one to which 2 or more people may be assigned and which is supervised either by a member of the Community Service Team, or by a person belonging to the organisation offering the placement. Group placements increase both the range of services which can be provided by the Community Service Scheme and the capacity of schemes to deal with a greater number of referrals and a wider variety of offenders. It is recommended that group placements should not normally contain more than 4 or 5 offender members at any one time, nor should they normally be supervised by qualified social work staff.
The Assessment of Work Placements
25.Each work placement, whether individual or group, must be assessed to take account of the following:
25.1would use of the placement jeopardise opportunities for paid employment?
25.2what type of work is involved and what skills are required?
25.3how would the work benefit the community? Does it offer an opportunity for the offender to make reparation to the community? Does it provide for contact with the beneficiary?
25.4how much supervision is required and what kind of supervision is available at the work place?
25.5Does the nature of the placement or its supervisory arrangements exclude certain offenders, taking into account present and previous offences?
25.6How long is the placement likely to last? At what time is work available? What degree of continuity can be expected?
25.7What extraneous factors may affect the completion of the work within the available time, e.g. bad weather, health hazards, etc?
25.8Can the placement cater for offenders with special needs/requirements, e.g. the disabled, single parents, etc?
25.9Does the Community Service Scheme have the current or potential capacity to use the work opportunities offered by the placement?
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