Written Evidence Apr. 17 2024
Inquiry: Prisons in WalesFound: The project positively contributes to the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders back into the
Written Evidence Apr. 17 2024
Inquiry: Fire and Rescue ServiceFound: Rehabilitation of Offenders Act - legislative change secured. Safeguarding Guidance.
Apr. 12 2024
Source Page: Immigration Rules archive: 10 April 2024 to 10 April 2024Found: institution other than a prison (including, in particular, a hospital or an institution for young offenders
Apr. 12 2024
Source Page: Immigration Rules archive: 10 April 2024 to 10 April 2024Found: institution other than a prison (including, in particular, a hospital or an institution for young offenders
Apr. 12 2024
Source Page: Immigration Rules archive: 4 April 2024 to 9 April 2024Found: institution other than a prison (including, in particular, a hospital or an institution for young offenders
Found: (11) Registered sex offenders are subject to ‘notification requirements’.
Apr. 12 2024
Source Page: Suffolk Youth Justice Service: A prevention and diversion successFound: ‘Children First, Offenders Second Positive Promotion: Reframing the Preventio n Debate’.
Written Evidence Apr. 09 2024
Committee: Human Rights (Joint Committee)Found: JUSTICE also scrutinizes Clause 28, which permits the use of force to compel offenders’ attendance
Found: BLUNKETT _ After Clause 48, insert the following new Clause— “Review: impact of section 48 on rehabilitation
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the early release of prisoners with a custodial sentence of less than 12 months, in order to alleviate overcrowding in the prison estate, on (1) reoffending rates, (2) public safety and (3) the operational effectiveness of the Probation Service.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Delivering public protection and reducing reoffending is not just about custody. The Probation Service plays a vital role in protecting the public and reducing reoffending. For some less serious offenders, suspended and community sentences are more effective for rehabilitation.
Community requirements can help to deter reoffending, drive swift consequences for non-compliance, protect the public, and ensure offenders feel the weight of crime. Probation assess an offender’s risk prior to, and throughout sentences, to ensure that offenders are appropriately monitored and supervised, following robust risk assessment measures to ensure public safety.
Evidence shows that 55% of people given a custodial sentence of less than 12 months are convicted of further offences. For offenders punished with Suspended Sentence Orders with requirements that are served in the community, the reoffending rate is significantly lower at 24%. That is why we are introducing a presumption to suspend sentences of under 12 months, however judges will still be able to exercise their discretion to impose custody in exceptional circumstances. We have also included exemptions to the presumption where there is a significant risk of harm to an individual or where the offender has breached an order of the court, as is the case for many repeat and prolific offenders.
We know there are existing challenges and will be additional demands on the Probation Service as a result of the presumption to suspend short sentences. That is why we have increased funding for the Probation Service by an additional £155 million a year to recruit record levels of staff so that we can bring down caseloads and deliver better and more consistent supervision of offenders in the community. We continue to accelerate recruitment of Probation Officers, with over 4,000 trainees joining the service since 2020 and an overall increase in staffing levels across the board. We are also resetting probation to prioritise early engagement and supervision in the first two-thirds of an offender’s sentence, a critical period during which probation staff can have the greatest impact on public protection and reducing reoffending.