Scottish Government

Section 3
DEVELOPING AND SUPPORTING THE WORKFORCE

DEVELOPING AND SUPPORTING THE WORKFORCE

3.1 Agencies face common challenges in ensuring that they continue to be able recruit, develop and retain staff. Local authorities employ around 600 criminal justice social workers and the other staff involved in CJSW - for example, community service managers. It is much more difficult to produce a comparable figure for the proportion of staff time in the SPS spent on activities aimed at reducing reoffending, or for the voluntary sector workforce. Supporting staff as a valuable resource and helping them to make best use of their skills and experience is critical to planning reform and implementing change. The new approach to offender management offers a chance to look at both local and national workforce development in a new way.

Mutual respect and understanding

3.2 Staff working in different areas of offender management face very different challenges.
All those working with offenders need to understand the challenges their colleagues face, respect their skills and trust their professionalism.

3.3 Joint working on Throughcare, shared risk assessment and management tools and the accreditation agenda is already breaking down barriers and building a shared understanding of better ways of working. Joint working between local authorities, the police and relevant voluntary sector agencies on sex offenders has already shown the power of shared responsibilities to bring different groups of professionals together.

3.4 Area plans will identify further local opportunities to bring professionals together in ways which require them to pool their skills.

3.5 This will be supported by the work of the National Support Team, led by Professor George Irving and with membership from local government, the SPS and the voluntary sector. It is devising a program of national support for local culture change in offender management services, to give added impetus and support to joint working.

Skills development

3.6 The new system promotes shared aims and priorities across criminal justice organisations and increases the scope for joint training and development of staff. This will link to developments following on from the 21st Century Review of Social Work, which play an important role in setting the future context for criminal justice social work ³.

Leadership

3.7 Public sector leaders face complex challenges and new demands from partnership working. The CJAs provide an opportunity to develop joint leadership training across offender management services.

In the period to April 2008

The NAB will

• Take an annual overview of future projections of supply and demand, taking account of changing needs in skills and training.
• Seek input into its work from Skills for Justice as appropriate.

The Executive will

• Provide central support to the National Support Team as a resource for CJAs, local authorities and the SPS.
• Use its links with Skills for Justice to ensure that it is well-informed about changes in offender management and can therefore take account of the workforce development issues these changes raise.

CJAs will

• Use area plans to identify further local opportunities to bring professionals together in ways which require them to pool their skills.
• Assist with the gathering of information from local authorities, the SPS and the voluntary sector on staffing levels and recruitment plans, to pass to the NAB.
• Through the area planning process, work with local employers to identify opportunities for joint training, work shadowing, secondment and mentoring where this will clearly add value.

Local authorities will

• Support initiatives to bring professionals together in ways which require them to pool their skills.
• Provide information to the CJA which will enable it to build a local picture on staffing deployment where it may have an affect on the delivery of area plans.
• Work with the CJA to identify opportunities for joint training, work shadowing, secondment and mentoring.
• Promote a culture of mutual understanding and respect within offender management services among their staff.

SPS will

• Support initiatives to bring professionals together in ways which require them to pool their skills.
• Provide information to the CJA which will enable it to build a local picture on staffing deployment, where it may have an affect on the delivery of area plans.
• Work with the CJA to identify opportunities for joint training, secondment, mentoring and work shadowing.
• Promote a culture of mutual understanding and respect within offender management services among their staff.
• Support the work of Skills for Justice.

Partner Bodies will

• Support initiatives to bring professionals together in ways which require them to pool their skills.
• Work with the CJA to identify opportunities for joint training, secondment and work shadowing.

Inspectorates and other independent and advisory bodies will support these changes:

• Through promoting learning and appropriate multi-disciplinary training.
• Inspectorates will comment on staffing issues as part of their inspection process, insofar as it may have an impact on delivery of services.