SUMMARY
Background to report
This inspection of Shetland is the fourteenth and last in our national programme of inspections of criminal justice social work services.
We examined the quality of assessments prepared for courts and the Parole Board and assessed the standard of supervision of offenders on probation, community service and parole and non-parole licence. We evaluated 38 court reports, two home background reports, 26 case files and observed examples of supervision. We interviewed managers and practitioners about their work and offenders about their experiences of community orders and licences. We asked the Sheriff and beneficiaries of community service for their views about the quality of service. We judged the quality of reports and the quality of information in the case files on a four-point scale: 'very good', 'good', 'adequate' and 'poor' . 1
Overall, we found that the criminal justice social work service in Shetland was well managed and sought to measure and improve its performance. The service did particularly well in meeting National Standards. The service was performing very well but there were some areas where there was room for improvement.
Key findings
- Over half the reports we read achieved a 'good' or 'very good' and nearly one third an 'adequate' overall standard;
- In all cases the service arranged an appointment within five working days and arranged four appointments in the first four weeks;
- All cases had a supervision plan;
- Supervision consistently addressed offending related needs in almost all cases and addressed offending in most cases;
- In the sub-sample of sex offender cases three were of a 'good' and two of a 'very good' overall standard; and
- Community service was well managed and provided a good range of group and individual placements.
Key areas for improvement
- Report writers should ensure that they do more to probe offenders' accounts of their offending behaviour;
- Post release supervision plans should be addressed in all home background reports;
- Case managers should ensure that victim awareness and offending behaviour is addressed, and home visits undertaken according to National Standards in all cases;
- The service should ensure that the standards applied in the management and supervision of serious violent offenders, and the methods of intervention used, match those achieved with sex offenders; and
- The service should provide a dedicated vehicle for community service staff to transport offenders and equipment.