The prison casts its long and sombre shadow over many aspects of probation’s history, its policies, practices and organisation. Probation has declared the provision of alternatives to imprisonment as its principal purpose, and secretaries of State have often spoke about as if the main worth of probation lies in its potential contribution to reducing the prison population. (probation book) Probation means you’re serving your sentence but you’re not in prison. (gov.uk) Probation has long worked with prisoners during sentence and, for even longer, has offered help and supervision to them after their release (probation book).
Some probation workers are based in prison contributing to sentence planning and risk assessment, but some are community-based probation staff and contribute to these processes. Probation staff may also call to offenders whose release is conditional in prison, and the prospect of imprisonment is sometimes among the incentives to comply with a community sentence (probation book). Probation is thought to create “through the-gate” rehabilitation services in which help and treatment begun in custody would continue to be provided in the community when they leave prison.
According to Mawby and Worrall (2013) the believe that there is a shifting relationship between probation and prison staff. The first probation staff working in the prisons were employed for both welfare or social work. Prison and probation were combined in a single ministerial portfolio, and the expression “correctional services” became increasingly common. In the 1980s and 1990s the emphasis on community sentences arguably displaced work with the former prisoners as a priority for probation.
In the past twenty years this has changed dramatically, and resettlement work has attracted initiatives in policy, practice and in research.
Here in Ireland, the probation service has probation officers that work in all prisons and places of detention. Their work in custody includes advising and assisting prisoners with issues which have led to their offending behaviour, in order to help them avoid reoffending; and helping them to cope with the impact of imprisonment. The Irish probation service motivates prisoners to use the period of imprisonment to address their offending behaviour. They contribute to the throughcare process, where the offender will be the subject to supervision by the Probation Service post-release. Contributing to multi-disciplinary working in prisons, for effective sentence management and delivering for rehabilitation and other services. It helps prisoners, their families and other social supports in preparing for positive re-settlement into society. The Irish probation service provides assessments and reports to the department of justice and equality, the Irish Prison Service, Parole Board and other appropriate organisations. As well as that, this service helps to co-ordinate and assist in community- based bodies in the provision of services to prisoners, their families, their communities and is aimed at reducing offending and assisting prisoners’ resettlement in their community (Irish Prison Services.ie).
The Probation of Offenders Act 1907, and this applied to Ireland, and effected a great reformation and provided a new official mechanism for supervising, on behalf of the court, the conduct of offenders released on probation. As well as that, the duties of the probation officer were to “to visit or receive reports from the probationer, to see that he observes the conditions of the order, to report to the court as to his behaviour, and to advise and befriend him and to find him employment” (probation.ie). The probation of Offenders Act 1907 continued in operation with the establishment of Saorst?t ?ireann (Irish Free State) on 6 December 1922 and has remained in Ireland as the principal legislation in the work of the Probation Service.
Until 1936, all probation officers in Ireland were female, consistent with Skehill’s (2000, p.691) claim of the predominance of women within the field of philanthropy and social work in Ireland and elsewhere in the early years of the twentieth century.
Probation has been variably but significantly involved in helping to prevent avoidable remands in custody, by providing information to the court or providing services. Much of this work is now undertaken by private or independent organisations rather than probation. ( probation book)
The Irish Penal Reform Trust is a state agency which focuses on non-custodial responses to crime, which has rehabilitation and social integration at its centre. The Irish Penal Reform Trust is a state agency that works with the prison services as they believe that the best way of limiting the use of imprisonment in Ireland is the development of alternatives to custody. These alternatives to custody include the wider use of suspended sentences and community service orders (Irish Penal Reform Trust.ie).
The Parole Board which replaced the Sentence Review Group, was established on an administrative basis in April 2001. The board’s principal role is to advise the Minister for Justice and Equality in relation to the administration of long-term prison services. The Interim Parole Board reviews the cases of prisoners sentenced to sentences of eight years or more. Prisoners serving sentences for certain offences, such as murder of a member of the Garda S?och?na or the Prison Service in the course of their duty, are excluded from this process. The board, by way of recommendation to the Minister, advises of the prisoner’s progress to date, the degree to which the prisoner has engaged with the various therapeutic services and how best to proceed with the future administration of the sentence. The final decision regarding the suggestions of the Parole Board lies with the minister, who can accept them in entirety, in part or reject them.
In February 2017, the Justice Secretary announced that NOMS (National Offender Management Service) would be replaced, a few weeks later in April 2017, by a new executive agency, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. The creation of HMPPS was accompanied by an official restatement of the importance of reducing offending and protecting the public, to improve training and career development opportunities for staff in prison and probation and that this new agency would have a clear focus on operational matters. (probation book).
According to Croz, in order to reduce the prison population and increase the efficiency of the criminal justice system, the goal of there project was to support the Minister of Justice in sustainable development of the national Probation service.
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