Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

This article provides a critical perspective on the political and policy history of probation in England and Wales to develop a better understanding of how TR came to be. TR was only the latest act in a longstanding process of changing probation to fit ideological ‘flavours’, and we suggest that it is the hidden nature of probation work in combination with a lack of public legitimation work by probation institutions and probation staff that has placed probation in such a vulnerable position.

Keywords

probation privatisation organisational change CJ legislations organisational culture

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Audit Commission (1989) Promoting Value for Money in the Probation Service. London: HMSO.

Bottoms

McWilliams

(1979) A non-treatment paradigm for probation practice. British Journal of Social Work 9: 159–202.

Burke

(2011) Editorial: A comparative imagination. Probation Journal 58(4): 311–316.

Burke

(2013) Editorial: Innovation and probation. Probation Journal 60(3): 223–226.

Burke

Collett

(2010) People are Not Things: What New Labour has done to Probation. Probation Journal 57(3): 232–249.

Burnett

(2004) One-to-one ways of promoting desistance: In search of an evidence base. In: Burnett

Roberts

(eds) What Works in Probation and Youth Justice. Cullompton: Willan.

Carter

(2003) Managing Offenders, Reducing Crime: The Correctional Services Review. London: Home Office Strategy Unit.

Cheliotis

(2006) How iron is the iron cage of new penology?: The role of human agency in the implementation of criminal justice policy. Punishment and Society 8(3): 313–340.

Clarke

(2010) Revolving door of crime and reoffending to stop says Clarke. News release, 30 June. Available at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/newsrelease300610a.htm (accessed 28 July 2010).

10.

Collett

(2013) Riots, revolution and rehabilitation: The future of probation. Howard Journal of Crime and Justice 52(2): 163–189.

11.

Crawford

Hucklesby

(eds) (2013) Legitimacy and Compliance in Criminal Justice. Abingdon: Routledge.

12.

Crawforth

(2011) Taking on trust: New leadership perspectives for probation. Howard Journal of Crime and Justice 50(3): 289–306.

13.

Debidin

(2009) A compendium of research and analysis on the Offender Assessment System (OASys) 2006–2009. Ministry of Justice Research Series 16/09. Available at: http://nomsintranet.org.uk/roh/official-documents/Debdin%20Compendium%20of%20OASys%20research.pdf (accessed 5 September 2018).

14.

Deering

(2011) Probation Practice and the New Penology: Practitioner Reflections. Aldershot: Ashgate.

15.

Deering

Feilzer

(2015) Transforming Rehabilitation: Is Privatisation the End of the Probation Deal? Bristol: Policy Press.

16.

Deering

Feilzer

(2017) Questions of legitimacy of probation practice after Transforming Rehabilitation. Howard Journal of Criminal Justice 56(2): 158–175.

17.

Exworthy

Halford

(1999) Professionals and managers in a changing public sector: Conflict, compromise and collaboration? In: Exworthy

Halford

(eds) Professionals and the New Managerialism in the Public Sector. Buckingham: Open University Press.

18.

Farrow

(2004) Still committed after all these years? Morale in the modern-day probation service. Probation Journal 51(3): 206–220.

19.

Flynn

(2002) Public Sector Management. Harlow: Pearson.

20.

Garland

(2001) The Culture of Control. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

21.

HM Inspectorate of Probation (2016a) Quality and impact inspection: The effectiveness of probation work in Durham. Available at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/08/Durham-QI-report.pdf (accessed 9 December 2016).

22.

HM Inspectorate of Probation (2016b) An inspection of Through the Gate resettlement services for short-term prisoners. Available at: http://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/cjji/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Through-the-Gate.pdf (accessed 9 December 2016).

23.

HM Inspectorate of Probation (2016c) Transforming Rehabilitation: Early Implementation 5. Manchester: HMIP.

24.

Home Office (1990) Crime, Justice and Protecting the Public. London: HMSO.

25.

Home Office (1992) National Standards for the Supervision of Offenders in the Community. London: HMSO.

26.

Home Office (1995) Strengthening Punishment in the Community. London: HMSO.

27.

Home Office (1996) Protecting the Public. London: HMSO.

28.

Home Office (2001) A New Choreography. An Integrated Strategy for the National Probation Service for England and Wales. London: HMSO.

29.

House of Commons Justice Committee (2018) Transforming Rehabilitation. London: House of Commons.

30.

Kemshall

(2003) Understanding Risk in Criminal Justice. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

31.

Kirton

Guillaume

(2015) Employment relations and working conditions in probation after Transforming Rehabilitation. Available at: https://www.napo.org.uk/advice-and-resource (accessed 9 December 2016).

32.

Leishman

Cope

Starie

(1995) Reforming the police in Britain: New public management, policy networks and a tough ‘old bill’. International Journal of Public Sector Management 8(4): 26–37.

33.

Lipton

Martinson

Wilks

(1975) The Effectiveness of Correctional Treatment. New York: Praeger.

34.

Mair

(2011) The Community Order in England and Wales – Policy and practice. Probation Journal 58(3): 215–232.

35.

Marston

(2010) Legislate in haste, repent at leisure. Probation Journal 57(3): 296–303.

36.

Martinson

(1974) What Works? Questions and answers about prison reform. The Public Interest 35: 22–54.

37.

Mawby

Worrall

(2013) Doing Probation Work: Identity in a Criminal Justice Occupation. London: Routledge.

38.

McCarva

(2008) Ch 9: England and Wales. In: Van Kalmthout

Durnescu

(eds) Probation in Europe. Available at: https://www.cep-probation.org/probation-in-europe-2008/ (accessed 5 September 2018).

39.

McKnight

(2008) Has probation been taken over by the prison service? NAPO. Available at: www.napo2.org.uk/napolog/archives/2008/05/has_probation_b.html (accessed 2 June 2008).

40.

Ministry of Justice (2018) Strengthening Probation, Building Confidence. London: MoJ.

41.

Ministry of Justice (2011) Competition Strategy for Offender Services. London: MoJ.

42.

Ministry of Justice (2012) Punishment and Reform: Effective Probation Services. Consultation Paper CP7/2012. London: MoJ.

43.

Ministry of Justice (2013a) Transforming Rehabilitation: A Revolution in the Way We Manage Offenders. London: MoJ.

44.

Ministry of Justice (2013b) Offender Management Statistics. Quarterly Bulletin April–June 2013. London: MoJ.

45.

Napo (2006) Restructuring Probation – What Works? Napo’s Response to the Home Office Consultation Paper ‘Restructuring Probation to Reduce Re-offending’. London: Napo.

46.

Napo (2010) Only 24% direct contact time – it’s official! Napo News 215. London: Napo.

47.

Napo (2013) Justice not for Sale: Time for Action! London: Napo.

48.

Napo (2014) Probation privatisation: Huge business risks. Napo News, March. London: Napo.

49.

Newburn

(2003) Crime and Criminal Justice Policy. Harlow: Longman.

50.

Home Office (1984) Statement of National Objectives and Priorities. London: Home Office.

51.

Parliamentary Select Committee on Public Administration (2002) Seventh Report on Public Administration, 24 June. Available at: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200102/cmselect/cmpubadm/263/26303.htm (accessed 24 May 2013).

52.

Pratt

Brown

Hallsworth

Morrison

(2005) The New Punitiveness: Trends, Theories, Perspectives. Cullompton: Willan.

53.

Raine

(2002) Modernisation and criminal justice. In: Ward

Scott

Lacey

(eds) Probation: Working for Justice. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

54.

Raynor

Vanstone

(2002) Understanding Community Penalties: Probation, Policy and Social Change. Buckingham: Open University Press.

55.

Raynor

Ugwudike

Vanstone

(2014) The impact of skills in probation work: A reconviction study. Criminology & Criminal Justice 14(2): 235–249.

56.

Roberts

Stalans

Indermaur

Hough

(2003) Penal Populism and Public Opinion. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

57.

Robinson

Burke

Millings

(2016) Criminal justice identities in transition: The case of devolved probation services in England and Wales. British Journal of Criminology 56: 161–178.

58.

Robinson

Burke

Millings

(2017) Probation, privatisation and legitimacy. Howard Journal of Crime and Justice 56(2): 137–157.

59.

Robinson

Priede

Farrall

Shapland

McNeill

(2014) Understanding ‘quality’ in probation practice: Frontline perspectives in England and Wales. Criminology and Criminal Justice 14(2): 123–142.

60.

Senior

(2013) Editorial. British Journal of Community Justice 11(2–3): 1–8.

61.

Senior

Crowther-Dowey

Long

(2007) Understanding Modernisation in Criminal Justice. Buckingham: Open University Press.

62.

Straw

(2007) Letter to Neil Gerrard, M.P. London: Ministry of Justice.

63.

The Guardian (2013) Probation service ‘revolution’ means wholesale privatisation. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/jan/09/probation-service-private-firms-grayling (accessed 7 August 2018).

64.

Tonry

(2004) Punishment and Politics: Evidence and Emulation in the Making of English Crime and Control Policy. Cullompton: Willan.

65.

Ugelvik

(2016) Techniques of legitimation: The narrative construction of legitimacy among immigration detention officers. Crime, Media, Culture 12(2): 215–232.

66.

Vanstone

(2004) Supervising Offenders in the Community: A History of Probation Theory and Practice. Aldershot: Ashgate.

67.

Vanstone

(2010) New Labour and criminal justice: Reflections on a wasteland of missed opportunity. Probation Journal 57(3): 281–285.

68.

Webster

(2014) Interviews on probation, 2013–2014. Available at: http://www.russellwebster.com/tag/tr-interviews/ (accessed 7 August 2018).

69.

Webster

(2018) More details on the future of probation. Available at: https://mailchi.mp/russellwebster/probconsultation?e=4aebd97429 (accessed 7 August 2018).

70.

Whitehead

Statham

(2006) The History of Probation: Politics, Power and Cultural Change 1876–2005. Crayford: Shaw & Sons.

71.

Wilson

(1975) Thinking About Crime. New York: Basic Books.

72.

Wilson

Kelling

(1982) Broken windows. Atlantic Monthly, March, pp. 29–38.

73.

Worrall

(2016) Probation in the genes? Personal reflections on the fortunes and misfortunes of an honourable profession. In: Vanstone

Priestley

(eds) Probation and Politics: Academic Reflections from Former Practitioners. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hollowing out probation? The roots of Transforming Rehabilitation

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References