Recommendation 190

Witnesses also spoke about the role of regional directors of the Probation Service in the next commissioning wave. “Regional probation directors would like to see far more of that budget being devolved to them so that they can make their own choices about what they purchase”, Justin Russell told us. He cited the example of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, which co-commissions services with the regional probation director, aside from national HMPPS commissioning. “We are seeing a more nuanced and flexible range of services there as we inspect”, Justin Russell explained. 369 Kim Thornden-Edwards responded that the services commissioned by HMPPS “are built to address needs that we know are pretty standardised across our probation services”, within which there can be “some flex” to adapt to local needs. She also referred to the “regional innovation fund” available to regional directors as the way for them to commission services locally. Where services might be commissioned centrally, HMPPS was “certainly alive to the potential learning from some of the bespoke and smaller niche commissions locally and what that may tell us that we should think about nationally”. 370