UNCLASSIFIED

Implementation of the Court Work other than Assessments and Reports Specification.
This instruction applies to : / Reference :
Probation Services / PI 11/2011
Effective Date
Implementation Date / Expiry Date
26 September 2011 / 1st October 2011 / 30th September 2015
Issued on the authority of / NOMS Agency Board
For action by / Trust Contract Managers
For information / Chairs of Probation Trusts
Chief Executive of Probation Trusts
Contact / Roz Evenden
Email:
Mobile: 07545 732823
Associated documents / The Court Work other than Assessment and Reports Specification,Operating Model, Direct Service Costs and Assumptions Document and Costing Spreadsheet, found at:
Specification, Benchmarking and Costing
Replaces the following documents which are hereby cancelled-
Audit/monitoring :
Compliance with these Mandatory Actions will be monitored through the regular contractual review process between Probation Providers and NOMS.
Introduces amendments to the following documents:
None

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CONTENTS

Section / Subject / Applies to
1. / Executive summary / All staff
2. / Operational Instruction / All staff
3. / Policy and Strategic Context / All staff
Annex A / Specification for ‘Court work other than assessments and reports’ / All staff

LINK TO SPECIFICATIONS

1.Executive summary

Background

1.1The specification for court work other than assessment and reports was issued to Probation Trusts on25th July 2011. It defines the service elements and outputs that are the minimum requirements for this area of work. The specification is divided in to four service elements being;

  • Prepare Information to Assists the Court in Sentencing Decisions: These specify pre court preparation outputs, which ensure Court Duty Officers can deliver the required outputs during court sittings.
  • Represent the Trust or other Providers of Probation Services in Court Proceedings: These specify required outputs when providing a service during court sittings.
  • Ensure Communication with Trusts, other Providers of Probation Services, Service Users and Other Agencies: These specify required outputs when court sittings have concluded.
  • Promote Sentencer and Judicial Confidence: These specify outputs required to ensure judges and magistrates have confidence in community sentences and that probations resources are managed effectively.

1.2The provision of services to the court is currently restricted to probation trusts or other public bodies within the Offender Management Act 2007. For Probation Trusts, providing advice and information to the courts has for a number of years been a priority in supporting and influencing sentencing practice and other decisions. This work is a core activity and effective delivery of court work can also impact on the demand for other probation services including the provision of pre sentence reports.

1.3Unlike the majority of other specifications, the operating and cost models supporting the court work specification have been developed on a “presence model” reflecting the dynamic environment and range of tasks which staff can be required to undertake. This model is designed to enable Probation Trusts to make efficient and flexible use of staff resources, ensuring that appropriate staff grades are deployed in both Magistrates and Crown Courts.

1.4The specification also recognises the importance of the engagement and promotion of services with judges and magistrates and the role of managers in this work. In addition to the promotion of services to the court, the outputs defined in promoting sentencer and judicial confidence will also cover key outcomes from other specifications. These include the promotion or raising awareness of bail services, bail accommodation and support services, and covering liaison and advice to courts in the deliver the curfew requirement specification. The combination of these outputs are costed within the court work specification to reflect the wide range of activity which may be taken by managers or staff and ensure the most efficient model of service delivery.

Desired outcomes

1.5This instruction is aimed to ensure that;

  • Services to both Magistrates and Crown Courts are delivered throughout England and Wales to achieve the outcomes and outputs in the service specification.
  • Staff responsible for delivering services to the courts understand and act upon the mandatory requirements set out in the specification.
  • Probation Trusts act on behalf of other providers of probation services during court proceedings where contracted to do so.
  • Probation Managers or staff engaged in promoting or increasing awareness of the judges and magistrates do so on behalf of the trust or other providers of probation services.
  • Commissioners and providers monitor performance against the outputs in the specification document.

Mandatory actions

1.6Probation Trusts must ensure that services to both Magistrates and Crown Courts are delivered in accordance with the service specification. All of the outputs in the specification are mandatory.

Resource Impact

1.7The presence cost model provides for the delivery of all key outcomes and outputs of this specification. Full details of the model and basis of the calculations are contained within the Direct Service Costs and Assumptions Document atSpecification, Benchmarking and Costing on Epic

1.8The provision of reports or breach papers are intrinsically linked to court work although the preparation of pre sentence reports including oral reports is separately costed in the specification for assessments and reports pre sentence. The preparation of breach papers by the offender manager or responsible officer are costed in the Manage the Community Order specification. However, it is recognised that staff representing trusts in court will need to understand and be confident about quality and content of reports they present or breaches they prosecute. The activity of reading and liaising with report authors or offender managers, if necessary, or responding to queries from judges or magistrates is accounted for within the cost model.

1.9Implementation of the specification may require Probation Trusts to review their deployment of staff. There is a minimum requirement that trusts will ensure probation advice is available to courts sitting at the weekend and on bank holidays. In addition, with the court closure programme currently being completed by HM Court and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) and the planned centralisation of weekend or bank holiday courts, it is anticipated that a probation presence will be contracted to the centralised courts. Costs for these courts have been included although Probation Trusts may need to consider the contractual implications for staff.

1.10The specification outputs are based on the current provision of probation services by trusts. However, under the NOMS Competition Strategy there may be new providers of probation service such as Community Payback. Probation Trusts may remain responsible for the delivery of the outputs identified in this specification for alternative providers of probation services where contracted to do so. This is the case with the current contract arrangement for Community Payback in London which has resulted in a review of the operating and cost models supporting this specification. In this example it is not envisaged that such requirements would currently result in additional costs. However there may be a need for further review of the operating or cost model dependant on the future development of any contract arrangements for other providers of probation services.

2.Operational instructions

2.1This specification will go live on 1st October 2011 with full implementation to be achieved by Probation Trusts by 1st April 2012.

2.2National Standards 2011 introduce two requirements in relation to court work; that courts are provided with information to support their decision making, and that sentencing decisions and information from court proceeding are communicated to all relevant parties. These standards, including the quality indicators and rationale contained in the supporting practice framework, reflect the outputs contained in this specification.

2.3This specification requires a Service Level Agreement between Probation Trusts and HMCTS to define the areas of service delivery and liaison arrangements. It is likely that trusts will already have these in place and liaison arrangements may have been based on guidance issued by the Office of the Senior Presiding Judges Office in 2008 (annex B in PC06/2009). This guidance is currently being updated and will be made available to trusts in the near future.

3. Policy and Strategic Context

3.1Under the Offender Management Act one of the purposes of probation is “providing for courts to be given assistance in determining the appropriate sentence to pass, and making other decisions, in respect of persons charged with or convicted of offences”. As previously stated the specification identifies the key outcomes and outputs, and captures the wide range of tasks which staff will complete in providing services to the court.

3.2The role of probation staff in courts is vital in maintaining the confidence of judges and magistrates. It is important that staff are familiar with the court setting and processes in addition to having the skills and competency to represent the trust in a dynamic and potentially challenging setting. Trusts may benefit from considering a flexible use of probation officers or probation services officers to ensure the most appropriate grade of staff are present at both Magistrates and Crown Courts.

3.3The operating model provides comprehensive guidance about local factors for consideration when implementing this specification. These include the appropriate allocation of tasks between different staff grades. There are a number of pre court activities which can be completed by administrative staff. In addition it may be helpful for trusts to ensure that staff have access to and benefit from the use IT systems such as Libra and Xhibit. The Xhibit guidance is currently being updated and will be available to trusts in the near future.

3.4A further important aspect for trusts to consider is that some of the efficiencies identified in the costing model for this specification are based on a “right first time” approach to ensure that reports and breach packs are court ready and do not require staff to spend time on corrections or obtaining additional papers. This approach may require trusts to review their internal arrangements relating to the preparation of reports or enforcement action.

3.5Additionally trusts may be responsible for representing other providers of probation services during court proceedings for example in prosecuting breaches or arranging for the amendment or transfer of orders. The exact requirements on probations trusts will be dependant on the contractual terms for other providers of probation services. A service level agreement is being drafted in relation to the provision of community payback and will be made available to probation trusts.

3.6There may be other expectations for trusts to consider in the delivery of the outputs of this specification. Cases may be dealt with where the offender is known to or will be supervised by another probation trust or provider of probation services. It is important that communication is undertaken in a timely manner to ensure orders can be commenced and offenders are clear on the arrangements for reports or the obligations of their sentence and how this will proceed. Trusts may benefit from reviewing the arrangements for confirming first appointments either internally or with other trusts or other providers of probation services.

3.7As previously stated the implementation of the specification requires trusts to have a service level agreement in place with HMCTS. It is recognised that service delivery can vary between different courts or areas dependant on a number of factors including locations, court size or listing practices. Trusts can best influence court or sentencing practice through gaining the confidence and trusts of judges or magistrates and other court users. It is recognised that Trusts do complete Sentencer Surveys and this specification would promote using this as a method to consider improvements in service delivery.

(signed)

Colin Allars

Director of Probation and Contracted Services

Annex A

Specification for Court work other than assessments and reports can be found on the MOJ website.

LINK TO SPECIFICATIONS

PI 11/2011UNCLASSIFIEDIssue date 26/09/2011