South East Consortium: Becoming a Probation Officer: The work of a Probation Officer



Becoming a Probation Officer > The work of a Probation Officer


	Salary for qualified Probation Officers Starting salary is £26,229 (2008) The skills and qualities that a Probation Officer/ Offender Manager possess are: - ability to relate to others - working as part of a team - working with people - communication skills - oral and written - planning and organising - self management and use of feedback - motivation and commitment - values - openness to new ideas - problem solving skills


	For a full outine, and rationale, behind current ways of working with offenders visit ‘What Works to Reduce Offending'


	Probation values Probation staff are committed to the following core values:

		Treating people fairly, openly and with respect.

		An uncompromising stance against harm caused by crime.

		A strong belief in the capacity of people to change.

		The importance of taking personal responsibility for behaviour.

		The necessity of learning from experience.


	The aims of the National Probation Service

		Protecting the public.

		Reducing re-offending.

		The proper punishment of offenders in the community.

		Ensuring offenders' awareness of the effects of crime on the victims of crime and the public.

		Rehabilitation of offenders.

For facts about crime see the British Crime Survey.

Other links:

Victim Support
An independent charity which helps people cope with the effects of crime:
www.victimsupport.org.uk

For publications on Home Office research and statistics visit:
www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds

The Centre for Crime and Justice Studies (CCJS) is a charity which aims to inform and educate about all aspects of crime and the criminal justice system from an objective standpoint, and in accordance with the Centre's values. They hope to encourage and facilitate healthy debate and understanding of the complex nature of issues concerning crime.


	Introduction

	How to apply

		The work of a Probation Officer

	Hear from offenders

	Professional organisations and trade unions

The work of a Probation Officer/ Offender Manager

Probation staff:

Provide reports on people charged with an offence - this helps Magistrates and Judges decide on the sentence they pass in court.
Enforce community sentences by ensuring offenders:
- carry out unpaid work that benefits the community
  and/or
  attend regular supervision sessions with a Probation Service member of staff
  
  and
- attend an offending behaviour programme
  and/or
  attend for drug misuse treatment & testing
  
  If offenders do not co-operate then Probation Service staff arrange return to court for a further punishment. This may be an additional community sentence, a fine or imprisonment.
Deliver specialist programmes for offenders proven to reduce further offending.
Provide Prison Governors with specialist reports. These help assess whether or not a prisoner should be released into the community, and if so under what conditions e.g. curfew/tagging order or Probation Service supervision.
Work with prisoners before, during and after their release from prison. Tackle the causes of their offending. Help to re-integrate them into the community on their release.
Provide information to Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangement meetings.
Liaise with victims of serious crime. Keep them informed about prisoner's progress in prison. Obtain feedback about any concerns they have about proposed release.
Work with employment, education and accommodation services to help offenders live crime-free lives. Support in these areas has been shown to reduce the chances of people offending again.
Work with other agencies and organisations for local crime reduction and community safety e.g. police, courts, local authorities, health services, substance misuse/drug services, voluntary agencies, Youth Offending Teams.

What prevents people from re-offending?

Attendance on effective offending behaviour programmes aimed at the right offenders, run in prison or in the community, can stop further offending.
Getting a job is very effective in helping previously unemployed offenders live crime-free lives.
A high percentage of persistent offenders have a serious drug or alcohol misuse problem and so they commit more crime. So getting treatment is often the first step to stop further offending.
Intensive police surveillance combined with increased levels of Probation Service supervision can work with the most persistent of offenders.

Much of the Probation Service's work involves contact with other agencies:
More about our Criminal Justice partners.



		Further information about the criminal justice system: Crime Reduction website www.crimereduction.gov.uk The Court Service www.courtservice.gov.uk The Police Service www.police.homeoffice.gov.uk The Ministry of Justice www.noms.justice.gov.uk The Probation Service www.probation.homeoffice.gov.uk The Prison Service www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) www.cps.gov.uk

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