Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Probation Service: Caseloads

Tuesday 28 March 2023 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • We have injected extra funding of more than 155 million a year to deliver more robust supervision, recruit thousands more staff, and reduce case loads to support the vital work of the probation service in keeping the public safe.
  • I join the hon Lady in paying tribute to the men and women who work in the probation service for the absolutely vital work that they do tirelessly.
  • In calendar year 2022, the number of staff in the probation service increased.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Kerry McCarthy Lab Bristol East
Justice & Courts
Context

Probation officers in Bristol East have reported being overworked, underpaid, and feeling undervalued. There are concerns about staff shortages and high sick leave rates.

Question

What steps he is taking to reduce probation officer case loads?

Answer from Damian Hinds

We have injected extra funding of more than £155 million a year to deliver more robust supervision, recruit thousands more staff, and reduce case loads to support the vital work of the probation service in keeping the public safe.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific details on how case loads are being reduced or exact reduction targets were not provided.

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Get updates like this by email
Q2 Kerry McCarthy Lab Bristol East
Policing & Resources Crime & Law Enforcement Employment
Context

Probation officers in Bristol East have reported being overworked, underpaid, and feeling undervalued. There are concerns about staff shortages and high sick leave rates.

Question

I thank the Minister for that response, but it does not really accord with what I have been told by probation officers, which is that they are overworked, underpaid and feel undervalued, and that the service is haemorrhaging staff. There are also an awful lot of people off sick. What impact does he think that will have on efforts to make sure that offenders do not go on to reoffend, and that we do not have a crime wave on our streets because we are simply not putting the resources into the probation service that could help prevent that?

Answer from Damian Hinds

I join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to the men and women who work in the probation service for the absolutely vital work that they do tirelessly. It is very important that we make sure we have the right levels of staffing; I can report to her that in calendar year 2022, the number of staff in post rose significantly, from 17,400 to 18,600. In her own area of the south-west, covering Bristol, we had 210 joiners for the year, but it is obviously very important that as those people come through, we carry on having the pipeline of talent coming in. It is also very important that we are investing suitably in senior probation officers for their oversight, which we are doing.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not address the specific impact of staff shortages and high sick leave rates on preventing reoffending or crime waves.

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Get updates like this by email