Northamptonshire Probation Delivery Unit (PDU) has received an overall rating of ‘Inadequate’ following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.

Martin Jones, Chief Inspector of Probation, said: “Despite leaders’ clear vision for the service at Northamptonshire PDU, the high staff vacancy rates, excessive workloads and poor-quality estates meant delivery of the vision was sadly an ambition rather than a reality at the point of inspection.”

At the time of the inspection, the vacancy rate for Probation Officers (POs) was 40 per cent. Whilst this was an improvement, the issue was exacerbated by sickness absence and vacancies across operational and administrative grades. Workloads at all levels were too high and POs described feeling ‘overwhelmed’ and uncertain about what to prioritise. This resulted in a detrimental effect on staff development, management oversight and overall service delivery and, ultimately, impacted on the quality of service provided locally.

As previously highlighted in a May 2022 inspection of Northamptonshire PDU, the estates across the unit remain unfit for purpose. The Kettering office remains too small, and staff lack privacy to undertake sensitive work. The Wellingborough office has significant pest and maintenance issues and, at the time of inspection, was not accessible for staff or people on probation with mobility considerations. This needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Mr Jones added: “Despite the challenges, practitioners at Northamptonshire PDU spoke positively about their roles, their teams, and the level of support they were receiving. Key to improving service delivery at Northamptonshire will be a renewed focus on the quality of casework, staff development and improving management oversight; together with an urgent, national consideration of how the wider probation estates strategy can better support a modern, responsive and high-quality service.”

The report makes seven recommendations to Northamptonshire PDU, including to ensure work is undertaken with other agencies to manage safeguarding and domestic abuse and to improve the use of interventions and services to manage the risk of harm.

ENDS

Notes to editor

1. Probation Delivery Units (PDUs) replaced Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) and the National Probation Service (NPS), which merged into a unified Probation Service in June 2021.
2. The report is available at www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation on 16 July 2024.
3. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth justice and probation services across England and Wales.
4. The Inspectorate uses a four-point scale: ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires improvement’ and ‘Inadequate’. The Inspectorate rates specific aspects of each service and also gives an overall rating.
5. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in March 2024.
6. Northamptonshire PDU was previously inspected by HM Inspectorate of Probation in May 2022 and was rated ‘Requires improvement’ https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprobation/inspections/northamptonshire-pdu/
7. For media enquiries, please contact Louise Cordell, Head of Communications 07523 805224 / media@hmiprobation.gov.uk