Probation Journal recent issues

A collective failure?

Burke, L. — 2009-09-04

The prisoner 's right to vote and civic responsibility: Reaffirming the social contract?

Easton, S. — 2009-09-04

This article considers the issue of the prisoner’s right to vote in the light of recent developments in law and policy. It critically reviews the purported justifications for disenfranchisement and argues that re-enfranchisement should be pursued on the grounds of both principle and policy.

Stress, support and well-being as perceived by probation trainees

Collins, S., Coffey, M., Cowe, F. — 2009-09-04

A study on stress, support and well-being was carried out with probation trainees (n = 110). The study indicated that working as a probation trainee entailed high demands. Greater levels of demands were experienced by trainees with children and those undertaking part-time work. A large majority of trainees reported a high sense of personal accomplishment, had good self esteem, held positive attitudes towards themselves and enjoyed their work with offenders. Female trainees had significantly less positive attitudes towards themselves than males. Small, but significant numbers of trainees experienced problems with stress, well-being, low self-esteem, tiredness and emotional exhaustion. They might benefit from receiving more individual support, mutual group support and stress management courses. ‘Professional’ support opportunities from fellow students and practice development assessors were perceived as more important than from family or friends. There were some significant differences between trainees in their perceptions of support offered by Consortia and their tutors. Overall, there were no significant differences in relation to age or ethnicity.

Probation officers' perspectives on recent Belgian changes in the probation service

Bauwens, A. — 2009-09-04

Throughout the last decade Belgium’s criminal justice sector — and its probation service in particular — has undergone a period of rapid change generated by public criticism, political pressure and calls for reform. This qualitative study highlights how structural changes have influenced probation practice by focusing on how probation officers themselves have perceived these recent organizational changes. These preliminary findings draw on a qualitative study of probation officers working in the House of Justice in Brussels and are compared with developments in England and Wales.

Probation and offender manager training: An argument for an integrated approach

Knight, C., Stout, B. — 2009-09-04

De Montfort University (DMU) was commissioned by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to carry out skills profile research to inform the proposed new probation training framework and curriculum. This article will outline the findings of this research and discuss the future of probation training. It will argue that the future training arrangements for probation staff need to take account of the fact that complex offender-focused work is now being carried out by various grades of staff and that the issue of role boundaries should be central to the debate about competency and qualifications. Whilst training resources can no longer be disproportionately targeted at the probation officer grade, to the detriment of other grades, the importance of higher education in enabling the development of critical and reflective skills as well as knowledge for all staff is emphasized.

The predictive validity of the OASys self-assessment questionnaire

Cluley, E. — 2009-09-04

Probation officer and offender views of the Community Order and the Suspended Sentence Order

Cluley, E. — 2009-09-04

Inspection of Youth Offending Teams 2003--2008

Fox, C. — 2009-09-04

An economic analysis of alternatives to prison for women offenders

Fox, C. — 2009-09-04

Review: Understanding Criminal Behaviour: David Jones Willan Publishing; 2008; pp 336; {pound}19.99, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84392--303--9

Lloyd, M. — 2009-09-04

Reluctant Gangsters -- The Changing Face of Youth Crime John Pitts Willan Publishing, 2008; pp 176; {pound}22.99, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84392--365--7

Griffith, H. — 2009-09-04

Review: Social Work with Young People Roger Smith: Polity Press; 2008; pp 218; {pound}14.99, pbk ISBN: 978--0--74563--913--0

Martin, R. — 2009-09-04

Review: Sexual Offending and Mental Health: Multidisciplinary Management in the Community Julia Houston and Sarah Galloway (eds): Jessica Kingsley; 2008; pp 288; {pound}25, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84310--550--3

Digard, L. — 2009-09-04

In court

Stone, N. — 2009-09-04

Useful and essential drug and alcohol guides for practitioners and managers

2009-09-04

Evaluation in a cold climate

2009-05-27

How not to assess probation performance: Constructing local reconviction rates

Hedderman, C. — 2009-05-27

Much of the responsibility for securing reductions in offending and reoffending is being devolved to local statutory services. It follows that robust and timely local measures for assessing reoffending must be created. To this end, for the last three years the National Offender Management Service has produced quarterly reconviction reports for individual probation areas based on `snapshots' (cross-sectional samples) of the supervision caseload. An independent examination of the data for the East Midlands Region reveals that the way cases have been selected and followed-up departs from the conventions employed in all previous (`longitudinal') reconviction studies in England and Wales. In particular, the `crosssectional' or snapshot approach led to the `at risk' period varying from one offender to another; and those on longer sentences stood a much greater than usual chance of appearing in several samples over time. This, together with other problems associated with not following a conventional longitudinal approach, leads to the conclusion that it would be unwise to use the quarterly figures produced thus far to draw conclusions about probation areas' performance.

Is custody an effective sentencing option for the UK? Evidence from a meta-analysis of existing studies

Marsh, K., Fox, C., Sarmah, R. — 2009-05-27

Prison numbers in the UK are at record levels and continue to rise. The rise in prison numbers has led to a renewed focus on the relative effectiveness of different sentences and in particular the effectiveness of prison when compared to alternative, community-based, sentences. The aim of this research is to test the hypothesis that prisons are an effective means of reducing re-offending in the UK. A review of existing studies identified 91 estimates of the effect on re-offending of prison for adults when compared against alternative sentences and 15 estimates of the effect on re-offending of prisons for juveniles when compared against alternative sentences. A meta-analysis was conducted on the different combinations of intervention and counterfactual information identified in the literature. The analysis suggests that the following alternative sentences for adult offenders reduce re-offending when compared to prison: residential drug treatment, surveillance, surveillance with drug treatment, prison in combination with educational/vocational interventions, prison in combination with behavioural interventions, prison in combination with sex offender treatment, and prison in combination with drug treatment. The analysis also identified the following alternative sentences for juvenile offenders which reduced re-offending when compared with prison: community supervision with victim reparation, and a community programme with aftercare and surveillance. The hypothesis that prisons are an effective means of reducing re-offending in the UK is generally rejected.

What Works in 2009: Progress or stagnation?

Stanley, S. — 2009-05-27

This article reviews the evidence that has been produced on the effectiveness of evidence-based interventions (What Works), and in particular cognitive-behavioural programmes, with adult offenders in the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) in England and Wales. It summarizes evidence available in the period 2000—2004 and reviews developments since 2004. These include newly published evidence, critiques of and alternatives to an emphasis on programmes. It concludes that the evidence base has developed more slowly than was hoped and expected but that we have still some promising leads. A redirection of the research effort is needed.

What has meta-analysis ever done for me? A comment on the context and value of the research presented in: `Is custody an effective sentencing option for the UK? Evidence from a meta-analysis of existing studies'

McCarthy, K. — 2009-05-27

This edition of the Probation Journal contains an article by Kevin Marsh, Chris Fox and Rashmi Sarmah on an evidence review and meta-analysis of the evidence on prison as an effective sentencing option. This comment piece provides some detail on the context of the research and a more general introduction to the methodology. The value of this type of research and some of the limitations are also discussed.

Effective supervision for reducing offending

Cluley, E. — 2009-05-27

Longitudinal survey of prisoners: Problems and needs of newly sentenced prisoners

Cluley, E. — 2009-05-27

Resettlement factors and reducing re-offending

Cluley, E. — 2009-05-27

Working towards recovery: Getting problem drug users into jobs

Fox, C. — 2009-05-27

Review: Dictionary of Probation and Offender Management Practice Rob Canton and David Hancock (eds): Willan Publishing, 2007; pp. 397, {pound}24.99, pbk ISBN 978--1--84392--289--6

Cheston, L. — 2009-05-27

Review: Poor Discipline: Parole and the Social Control of the Underclass 1890--1990 Jonathan Simon University of Chicago Press; 1993; pp 286; {pound}17.50, pbk ISBN: 978--0--22675--857--5 Supervising Offenders in the Community: A History of Probation Theory and Practice Maurice Vanstone Ashgate; 2004; pp 198; {pound}19.99, pbk ISBN 978--0--75467--174--9

McNeill, F. — 2009-05-27

Review: Hate Crime and the City Paul Iganski Policy Press; 2008; pp 168; {pound}21.99, pbk ISBN 978--1--86134--939--2

Dixon, L. — 2009-05-27

In court

2009-05-27

Nigel Stone, Senior Lecturer in Criminology in the School of Social Work and Psychosocial Sciences, University of East Anglia, reviews recent appeal judgements and other judicial developments that inform sentencing and early release.

Resources

2009-05-27

A broken profession or a broken society?

Burke, L. — 2009-02-25

Serious further offences: An exploration of risk and typologies

Craissati, J., Sindall, O. — 2009-02-25

This study examined 94 serious further offences (SFOs) committed by offenders managed by the London Probation Area over a 14-month period between 2004 and 2006. Data was collated on background and criminogenic variables for the sample, as well as retrospectively administering a range of validated actuarial measures of risk prediction. The predictive validity of key variables embedded within the probation OASys tool were also examined, specifically the utility of the DSPD variables and the OGRS and OGRS-2. The SFO offender characteristics — in keeping with previous studies — were wide ranging, as were the risk profiles of the offenders, the majority of whom fell into the medium risk range. The risk assessment and personality-based assessment tools routinely available to the probation service — that is, DSPD and OGRS scores — were found to be at least as accurate as other actuarially based methods of risk prediction. There were no clear identifying features of this sample of offenders which seemed to differentiate them from a much wider sample of the probation caseload, although the research was not designed to provide a comparison study. However, examination of the nature of the SFOs suggested there were some key situational contexts which were associated with serious harm to others (rather than simply likelihood of re-offending). These contexts included pervasive weapon use, unexpected victim responses during acquisitive crimes, and disputes occurring within an anti-social male subculture. Recommendations included a greater emphasis on harm reduction approaches to probation interventions in terms of risky lifestyles and weapon use.

`Real' violence?: Gender and (male) violence -- an Australian perspective

Seymour, K. — 2009-02-25

Based on the findings of an exploratory study this article focuses on the ways in which a group of South Australian practitioners, engaged in work with men who are violent towards their female partners, construct and understand male violence. Evident in the participants' understandings of violence is a tendency, firstly, to dichotomize violence into two `types' — that directed towards other men and that directed at women; and, secondly, to categorize violence as either `normal'/ unremarkable (male-to-male violence) or gendered (`domestic' violence). In distinguishing between gendered violence and `other' violence, such as that between men in the public sphere, the latter is constructed as `ordinary' violence, worthy of intervention in only certain, `extreme' or excessive, circumstances. It is argued that these understandings, based upon a conflation of masculinity and violence, reflect the broader context of gendered power, disciplinary knowledge and expertise, and have significant implications for the ways in which male violence is explained and addressed, and, in the Australian context, the associated marginalization of domestic violence as an area of professional intervention.

Community managed offenders' access to healthcare services: Report of a pilot study

Brooker, C., Syson-Nibbs, L., Barrett, P., Fox, C. — 2009-02-25

This article describes how a sample group of community managed offenders engaged with a range of health services. This is based on the findings from a pilot health needs assessment involving a representative sample of 183 offenders within two county-wide probation services. Health information was collected using a specially designed structured health needs assessment tool and complemented by exploratory interviews with probation workers. The results indicated that community offenders were found to have greater physical and mental health needs than the general population. Some problems were identified, particularly in engaging with dental and mental health services. Although many participants did not report any difficulty in accessing services, it would appear that offenders' engagement with health services was incommensurate with their likely level of need. There are clear implications for NHS joint commissioning groups who plan health services for this vulnerable group.

`People first: Probation officer perspectives on probation work' -- A practitioner's response

Matthews, J. — 2009-02-25

This article is a response to Jill Annison, Tina Eadie and Charlotte Knight's article `People First: Probation officer perspectives on probation work' published in the September 2008 edition of Probation Journal. The authors compared three studies that explored the reasons why individuals chose probation as a career, the views and experiences of staff at a range of levels of experience, and the career trajectories of DipPS graduates. The article argued that individuals enter probation in order to work with people and that this element of the work continues to provide the most satisfaction for staff.

Seeing and believing: Visible unpaid work and its implications for public confidence

D'Souza, N. — 2009-02-25

An inspection of the Offender Management Model

Cluley, E. — 2009-02-25

Imprisonment for Public Protection prisoners and mental health issues

Cluley, E. — 2009-02-25

Towards effective sentencing

Fox, C. — 2009-02-25

Review: Researching Criminal Justice Series: Zero Tolerance Policing Maurice Punch Policy Press, 2007; pp 64; {pound}14.99, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84742--055--8

Millings, M. — 2009-02-25

Review: Systems Thinking in the Public Sector: The Failure of the Reform Regime and a Manifesto for a Better Way John Seddon Triarchy Press; 2008; pp 216; {pound}20, pbk ISBN: 978--0--95500--818--4

Cheston, L. — 2009-02-25

Review: The Handbook of Victims and Victimology Sandra Walklate (ed.) Willan Publishing; 2007; pp 226; {pound}31.50, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84392--257--5

Nellis, M. — 2009-02-25

Review: Criminalising Social Policy: Anti-social Behaviour and Welfare in a De-civilised Society John J. Rodger Willan Publishing, 2008; pp 235; {pound}18.99, pbk ISBN: 978--1--84392--326--8

Evans, D. G. — 2009-02-25

In court

2009-02-25

Resources

2009-02-25

Public attitudes and the media

Burke, L. — 2008-11-18

Selling the Public on Probation: Beyond the Bib

Maruna, S., King, A. — 2008-11-18

With the release of the Casey Report, Engaging Communities in Fighting Crime (Casey, 2008), improving public confidence in criminal justice work, and community penalties in particular, has become a central concern for the British Government. Among the other suggestions for improving public confidence in community interventions is to require those doing community service work to wear fluorescent bibs identifying themselves as `offenders'. In this article, we review what is known about public opinion regarding community penalties, and discuss two possible routes to changing these attitudes: one is cognitive and the other is emotive. We review the research evidence on both, and discuss the likelihood of either being successful. We conclude by returning to the context of the Casey Report and assessing the likelihood that the Casey proposals will be successful on the basis of the evidence reviewed.

Reel life after prison: Repression and reform in films about release from prison

Bennett, J. — 2008-11-18

This article examines the representation of release from prison in popular films. The article explores how prison films generally reflect and reinforce conventional views about crime and punishment, and in release from prison films this is seen in the predominant representation of violent, unreformed criminals being released from prisons to offend again. However, the article also identifies that images of reform and redemption appear in films and that this plays a role in maintaining a popular space for an alternative discourse. Two examples of reform-minded films about release from prison are compared and contrasted: Boy A (2007) and The Woodsman (2004). The article draws some conclusions about successful strategies of promoting penal reform through popular films and the difficulties of realizing this.

Outside the outsiders: Media representations of drug use

Taylor, S. — 2008-11-18

This article is intended to highlight some key themes within the news media's reporting of drugs, drug users and drug-related crime.¹ Its aim is to focus on how the news media represent illegal drugs and drug users and their causal links with further criminal behaviour. The article proposes that news media and governmental beliefs mirror each other and have both adopted a stance that serious or `problematic' drug use is dangerous and causes further criminality. It also asserts that both media coverage and policy direction are disproportionately aimed at specific stereotypes of drug users and drug-using offenders, to the point whereby simplistic notions have developed at the expense of a much wider and more complex discussion to the detriment of a holistic drugs discourse. The ramifications of such representations are that users of heroin and crack cocaine are thought of as risk-bearing `outsiders' and are actively excluded from society. The article will draw on a plethora of studies from across the globe through the belief that even in an era of media diversity and culturally diverse drug use, there are common globally identifiable themes within the news media's reporting of drugs and crime.

Changing public attitudes to crime and punishment -- Building confidence in community penalties

Allen, R. — 2008-11-18

This article analyses lessons from a range of initiatives aimed at increasing public and sentencers' confidence in community sentences over the last five years. In particular it addresses the question of what more could be done to boost confidence in a way which contributes more directly to the replacement of short terms of imprisonment by community sentences.

Managing the damage from drugs and alcohol

Buchanan, J. — 2008-11-18

Arguments for and against prison expansion

Fox, C. — 2008-11-18

The prison population in America

Fox, C. — 2008-11-18

A new approach to crime and justice

Fox, C. — 2008-11-18

Risk of harm: Learning from inspections

Cluley, E. — 2008-11-18

A review of the use of mental health requirements and Community Orders

Cluley, E. — 2008-11-18

Review: Youth Drinking Cultures: European Experiences: M. Jarvinen and R. Room (eds) Ashgate, 2007; pp 178; {pound}50.00, hbk ISBN--13: 978--0--7546--4996--0

Forsyth, A. J. M. — 2008-11-18

Review: The End of Politics: New Labour and the Folly of Managerialism Chris Dillow: Harriman House Publishing; 2007; pp 293; {pound}16.99, hbk ISBN--13: 978--1--90564--117--6

Cheston, L. — 2008-11-18

Review: Conduct Disorder and Offending Behaviour in Young People: Findings from the Research Kristin Liabo and Joanna Richardson: Jessica Kingsley Publishers; 2007; pp 143; {pound}16.99, pbk, ISBN--13: 978--1--84310--508--4

Marshall, J. J — 2008-11-18

Review: Contemporary Risk Assessments in Safeguarding Children Martin C. Calder (ed.): Russell House Publishing, 2008; pp 290, {pound}44.95, pbk ISBN: 978--1--905541--20--1

Martin, R. — 2008-11-18

Review: Assessing the Use and Impact of Anti-social Behaviour Orders Roger Matthews, Helen Easton, Daniel Briggs and Ken Pease: Policy Press, 2007; pp 80; {pound}14.99, pbk ISBN 978--1--847420--57--2

Cross, N. — 2008-11-18

Review: So You Think You Know Me? Allan Weaver: Waterside Press, 2008; pp. 212, {pound}16.50, pbk ISBN: 978--1--904380--45--0

Wolfarth, P. — 2008-11-18

In court

Stone, N. — 2008-11-18

Resources

2008-11-18