Probation Board for Northern Ireland

Last updated

The Probation Board for Northern Ireland (PBNI) is a non-departmental public body responsible to the Northern Ireland Department of Justice for the Probation Service in Northern Ireland. It is part of the Public Protection Arrangements Northern Ireland (PPANI). The Board has 13 members drawn from across the community to oversee the work of the Probation Service. It employs around 430 people, around half of whom are probation officers, based in 31 offices throughout Northern Ireland. The Board requires probation officers to hold professional qualifications in social work. Other employees are community service supervisors, probation services officers, and corporate services staff.

Contents

The work of the Board involves assessing convicted offenders, preparing pre-sentence reports for the courts, reports for parole commissioners and other justice-related bodies. The Board supervises over 4,000 court orders at any given time. The Board also provides a number of behavioural change programmes such as sex offending, domestic violence, drug/alcohol-related offending, anger management and violence.

History of probation in Northern Ireland

In 1908, the first official probation Officers started work in Belfast, following the implementation of the Probation of Offenders Act 1907. Under this Act, magistrates were able to appoint probation officers to supervise defendants through a probation order for the first time. Some of the first appointed probation officers in Belfast came from Belfast City Mission and St Vincent de Paul. The magistracy had responsibility for probation services.

In 1921, when Northern Ireland came into being, the authority for justice was devolved to the new Northern Ireland Parliament and rested with the Ministry of Home Affairs. It was not until 1928 that the Ministry began issuing probation rules (the first set of standards for the Probation Service). In 1935, following developments in England, the Committee on the Protection and Welfare of the Young and the Treatment of Young Offenders (known as the Lynn Committee) was established. At this time, England and Wales used probation services much more than Northern Ireland.

In 1936, appointing probation officers became the responsibility of the Ministry of Home Affairs and was funded through the Dog Licence Fund.[ citation needed ] In 1936, the cost of the probation service was £312.

The Lynn Committee published its report in 1938 [1] The report examined a number of issues that were believed to be contributory factors to offending behaviour in young people such as unemployment, inadequate housing, cinemas, dance halls and street trading. Any implementation of recommendations were stalled due to the outbreak of World War Two (1939–1945).

The first senior probation officer (head of probation) was James McAdam in 1946, though during his tenure (1946–1948) his role was more of a co-ordinating and instructor type role.

In 1950, the Northern Ireland Parliament passed the Probation Act (NI) which was influenced by another report endorsing the Lynn Committee Report of 1938. From then, the Ministry of Home Affairs had responsibility for the Probation Service including appointments and funding (staff were now civil servants with salaries and pensions to reflect the change). The legislation also meant that probation officers would now have to enquire into the circumstances of any accused to write a report to aid the court's determining the most suitable sentence. In addition, the Children and Young Persons (NI) Act also made it necessary for probation officers to be notified when young persons came before the courts to prepare a similar report.

The Prison Act 1953 gave probation officers new responsibilities in the after care of sentenced offenders through post release supervision.

The Children and Young Persons (NI) Act 1968 set the age of criminal responsibility at 10 and set out the court's powers in relation to the care and protection of young persons aged 14 and over. This continued the involvement of the Probation Service in the area of young offenders. Also during this time, the Probation Service recruited its first university graduates.

By 1976, there were 45 probation officers with 7 support staff. There were also 23 trainees. This was the beginning of the Probation Service progressing towards a more professional organisation with opportunities to develop skills and experience.

The period of the Troubles in Northern Ireland saw much of the after care aspect of the probation officer's role put on ice as emergency legislation introduced in 1970 brought in to deal with aspects of the unrest made a large number of new prisoners eligible for the after care. This would have put probation officers at the centre supervising a different type of released prisoner not envisaged in the original 1953 Act. As such, the Probation Service did not have to supervise politically motivated offenders.

In 1979, a review group published a report after being formed by the Department of Health and Social Services and the Northern Ireland Office to look at the future of the Probation Service. The group was headed by Sir Harold Black. It recommended that the Probation Service remain as a separate service focusing on dealing with offenders and serving the courts. It also recommended that the Probation Service should be administered by a board drawn from the whole community and that a written code of practice should be drawn up for approval by the courts and the Secretary of State.

In 1982, the Probation Board Order (NI) was enacted establishing the Probation Board for Northern Ireland (PBNI) as a non-departmental public body with a chair, deputy chair and between 10 and 18 other members to be appointed by the Secretary of State for a three-year term. Jim Grew was the first Chair.

Staffing

The current Chief Executive is Amanda Stewart. The current Chair of the Board is Dale Ashford QFSM.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">His Majesty's Prison Service</span> Government service managing most of the prisons within England and Wales

His Majesty's Prison Service (HMPS) is a part of HM Prison and Probation Service, which is the part of His Majesty's Government charged with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Probation Service (England and Wales)</span> Criminal justice service in England and Wales

The Probation Service for England and Wales is a statutory criminal justice service, mainly responsible for the supervision of offenders in the community and the provision of reports to the criminal courts to assist them in their sentencing duties. It was established in its current form by the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act in April 2001, but has existed since 1907 as a set of area-based services interacting at arm's length with central government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Youth offending team</span>

In England and Wales, a youth offending team (YOT) is a multi-agency team that is coordinated by a local authority and overseen by the Youth Justice Board. It deals with young offenders, sets up community services and reparation plans, and attempts to prevent youth recidivism and incarceration. YOTs were set up following the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 with the intention of reducing the risk of young people offending and re-offending, and to provide counsel and rehabilitation to those who do offend. Youth offending teams engage in a wide variety of work with young offenders in order to achieve their aims. YOTs supervise young people who have been ordered by the court to serve sentences in the community or in the secure estate. Sometimes, teams organise meetings between offenders and victims to encourage apologies and reparation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Probation and parole officer</span> Officials who supervise the conduct of offenders on community supervision

A probation or parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probation and parole officers are employed by the government of the jurisdiction in which they operate, although some are employed by private companies that provide contracted services to the government.

ACT Corrective Services (ACTCS) is an agency of the Justice and Community Safety Directorate (JACSD) of the Australian Capital Territory government in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. It is responsible for a wide range of activities and services in the area aimed at protecting the community and reducing offending behaviour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Children's hearing</span> Part of the legal and welfare systems for children and young people in Scotland

A children's hearing is part of the legal and welfare systems in Scotland; it aims to combine justice and welfare for children and young people. As of 31 March 2020, 8,875 of Scotland's children were subject to a compulsory supervision order.

The U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services System, also called the Office of Probation and Pretrial Services, part of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, is the probation office of the federal judiciary of the United States. It serves the United States district courts in all 94 federal judicial districts nationwide and constitutes the community corrections arm of the Federal Judiciary. It administers probation and supervised release under United States federal law enforced by probation officers.

In the jurisdiction of England and Wales, a Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangement (MAPPA) is an arrangement, set up in 2001, for the "responsible authorities" tasked with the management of registered sex offenders, violent and other types of sexual offenders, and offenders who pose a serious risk of harm to the public. The "responsible authorities" of the MAPPA include the National Probation Service, HM Prison Service and England and Wales Police Forces. MAPPA is coordinated and supported nationally by the Public Protection Unit within the National Offender Management Service. MAPPA was introduced by the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 and was strengthened under the Criminal Justice Act 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Ireland Prison Service</span> Government service managing prisons within Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Prison Service is the agency charged with managing prisons in Northern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)</span> Ministerial department of the UK Government

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is headed by the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor. Its stated priorities are to reduce re-offending and protect the public, to provide access to justice, to increase confidence in the justice system, and to uphold people's civil liberties. The Secretary of State is the minister responsible to Parliament for the judiciary, the court system, prisons, and probation in England and Wales, with some additional UK-wide responsibilities, e.g., the UK Supreme Court and judicial appointments by the Crown. The department is also responsible for areas of constitutional policy not transferred in 2010 to the Deputy Prime Minister, human rights law, and information rights law across the UK.

Rodney Emrys Morgan was Criminology lecturer at the University of Bath in the early 1980s and is Professor Emeritus, University of Bristol and Visiting Professor at the University of Sussex. He is the former chair of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (2004-7) and prior to that was HM Chief Inspector of Probation for England and Wales (2001-4).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Department of Justice (Northern Ireland)</span> Northern Irish government department

The Department of Justice is a government department in the Northern Ireland Executive, which was established on 12 April 2010 as part of the devolution of justice matters to the Northern Ireland Assembly. The department's Permanent Secretary is Hugh Widdis. It combines the previous work of the Northern Ireland Office and the Ministry of Justice, within the United Kingdom Government, which were respectively responsible for justice policy and the administration of courts in Northern Ireland.

Lancashire Probation Trust is a criminal justice agency responsible for punishing and rehabilitating offenders in Lancashire, England.

The New Zealand Parole Board is an independent statutory body established in 2002 that considers offenders for parole. Its task "is to undertake an assessment of the risk that long-term sentenced offenders might pose to the safety of the community if they were to be released before the end of their sentence". The Board also sets conditions of release for offenders so their reintegration back in to the community can be effectively managed. Once the conditions are set it becomes the responsibility of Community Corrections to manage the offender." 'Long term' is defined as more than 24 months. Short-term prisoners are automatically released after serving half their sentence.

The concept of probation was introduced to Pakistan, then part of British India, in 1923. This initial system amounted to binding over some first-time offenders, without supervision by probation staff, and applied chiefly to young offenders. Reforms and extension to adult offenders were considered but not implemented under British rule, although a form of "probational release" or parole from longer prison sentences was introduced in the then province of Punjab in 1926.

The New Zealand Probation Service is a branch or service of the New Zealand Corrections Department. Established in 1886, its role is to manage offenders sentenced to community based sentences such as home detention, community detention and intensive supervision. The Service also manages prisoners in the community who have been released on parole and offenders on release conditions at the end of their prison sentence. According to Corrections website, in 2014 the Service was looking after approximately 30,000 offenders in the community. The Probation Officer's role is described as "work(ing) with people on probation to motivate them to make changes in their lives. This may include attending programmes to address violence, alcohol and drug abuse or driving offences."

The youth justice system in New Zealand consists of organisations and processes that deal with offending by children aged 10–13 years and young people aged 14–16 years. These differ from general criminal processes, and are governed by different principles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eithne, Lady Birt</span>

Eithne Victoria, Lady Birt, CB is the former founding Director-General of the National Probation Service, and former managing director of the Government Division at Fujitsu. She is the wife of John Birt, Baron Birt, and is styled as Lady Birt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Probation in Ukraine</span> System of supervision over offenders in Ukraine ordered by a court

Probation is a system of supervision and social-pedagogic activities over offender, ordered by a Court and in accordance to the legislation; enforcement of certain types of a criminal penalty, not concerned the deprivation of liberty and to provide the Court with information characterized the offender.

References

  1. The Report of the Committee on the Protection and Welfare of the Young and the Treatment of Young Offenders' (Command 187).