Select committee: Justice Committee
Recommendation 8
3rd Report: Coronavirus (COVID-19): The impact on probation services
Published 20 Jul 2020
Paragraph 50
Addressed to Ministry of Justice
Justice Committee Coronavirus (COVID-19): The impact on prison, probation and court systems All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Committee are pleased to hear about the work the Ministry has done with the DWP to make Universal Credit more accessible to those leaving prisons. We also welcome the increase in the Subsistence Grant for those who are leaving prison early under the End of Custody Temporary Release scheme, however, we also consider those leaving prison through the ordinary course of events to be in need of additional provision during this unprecedented time. We recommend that the Ministry review 24 Coronavirus (COVID-19): The impact on probation systems the Discharge Grant, and reconsider increasing it during the period of coronavirus, particularly considering that all those released from prison will face challenges adapting to the current environment, and vulnerability may be heightened by the fact that many support services have reduced in capacity and changed delivery models.The Committee are pleased to hear about the work the Ministry has done with the DWP to make Universal Credit more accessible to those leaving prisons. We also welcome the increase in the Subsistence Grant for those who are leaving prison early under the End of Custody Temporary Release scheme, however, we also consider those leaving prison through the ordinary course of events to be in need of additional provision during this unprecedented time. We recommend that the Ministry review the Discharge Grant, and reconsider increasing it during the period of coronavirus, particularly considering that all those released from prison will face challenges adapting to the current environment, and vulnerability may be heightened by the fact that many support services have reduced in capacity and changed delivery models.
From: Justice Committee, 3rd Report: Coronavirus (COVID-19): The impact on probation services (HC 461), paragraph 50, 20 July 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 2 October 2020 (deadline 20 September 2020).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government welcomes the Committee's findings and sets out, recommendation by recommendation, how it is adapting probation services during the pandemic and moving towards the new model for probation from June 2021.
- On remote supervision, the National Probation Service "accepts that face to face contact with many service users is an essential way of working", and plans a "blended" approach to future supervision, with detail in an updated Target Operating Model to be published in February 2021.
- On unpaid work backlogs, CRCs have been asked to set out plans to return to "100% pre-Covid-19 capacity for delivery by the end of the year"; the government says there will be no return to pre-Covid delivery of unpaid work and accredited programmes until social distancing restrictions are fully relaxed.
- On the Discharge Grant, the government says "there are no decisions to increase" it during this period, but "options are being considered for its future" and it will keep the Committee updated.
- On the transition to the new model, it says the decision to end the Probation Delivery Partner competition was "based on robust plans", with an annexed timeline including CRC contracts ending in June 2021 and the final Target Operating Model published in February 2021.