Probation service needs its own voice

Reform of the criminal justice system has diluted probation service's autonomy, says criminology expert

The distinctive influence of the probation service is being threatened by reform of the criminal justice system, according to a report out today.

Dr Philip Whitehead, senior lecturer in criminology at Teeside University argues in today's issue of Criminal Justice Matters, the magazine of the centre for crime and justice studies at King's College London, that reforms to the criminal justice system, including the creation of the National Offender Management System, has diluted the "distinctive and separate voice" of the probation service.

"The language of multi-agency partnerships can be positive, but reducing 'cultural divides' between organisations can produce negative outcomes which are in no one's best interests except, it seems, political decision-makers," says Whitehead. He believes the probation service should have a clearly articulated rationale, different to other criminal justice organisations, because it helps ensure prisons are used as a last resort for more serious offenders.

But there is now, he says, too much emphasis on punishment within the criminal service and this has come about because despite the laudable aims of multi-agency partnerships, it can lead to the distinctive contributions of those within different institutions - in this case, the probation service and the prison service - being weakened.

Whitehead also argues that dealing with people who offend involves complex moral issues that takes the debate beyond financial, bureaucratic and managerial priorities. He says it is important for those dealing with this matters to retain their distinctive voices; indeed, he argues that the challenge of testing out alternative perspectives is a necessary mechanism that maintains the strength of different organisations as democratic institutions.

"On other words, competing and sometimes discordant voices heard from within different organisations can be a sign of health rather than malaise, particularly when producing policies that respond effectively to offending episodes."