People First: Probation Officer Perspectives on Probation Work

Abstract

The Probation Service has experienced massive changes during the past 10 years, including the way in which its probation officers are trained. Whether or not the espoused intention of this latter change was to introduce a `new breed' of officer more versed in control than care, the three studies reported here all demonstrate the same finding, namely that individuals enter the training to work with people, and that they continue to achieve most satisfaction from this. The studies focus variously on newly qualified officers, those in training, and those applying for training. This article reviews these studies and offers a critical analysis of their key findings.

Hearing new voices: Re-viewing Youth Justice Policy through Practitioners’ Relationships with Young People

“…As successive governments switch tactics to contain youth offending, and strive to manage the widening field of social and economic problems faced by young people using the criminal justice system, the centrality of that relationship becomes ever clearer. Practice literature, across the related fields of youth justice, social work and probation often highlight its crucial importance (Barry, 2007;Farrow et al 2007;Stephenson et al 2007;Annison et al, 2008;), with some youth justice studies focusing on the particular ways practitioners engage young people and the importance of this relationship (McNeill, 2006a(McNeill, , 2006bMcNeill and Maruna, 2008). Similarly, a few studies have captured the perspectives of marginalised young people in and outside of the youth justice system (notably Barron, 2000;Sharpe, 2011).…”

Will the real social worker please stand up? Defining criminal justice social work

“…7 In contrast, others, like Annison et al, write about a 'new breed' of probation officer, more versed in control than care. 8 This echoes Whitehead and Braswell's lamentation of the supposedly 'dark side' of contemporary probation officers:…”

W(h)ither the academy? An exploration of the role of university social work in shaping the future of social work in Europe

“…Instead, official audit 'focused largely on issues of compliance with the regulatory framework and no evaluation was undertaken of the overall impact of the diploma on service delivery' (Knight & Ward, 2012, p. 160). Subsequently, much research has been small scale, practitioner focused and concerned with the nature and quality of practice under 'the new regime', comparing 'old' and 'new' school approaches to probation (Annison, Eadie, & Knight, 2008;Fitzgibbon, 2011;Gregory, 2010). Generally, these conclude that contemporary arrangements represent 'a more instrumental and functional training programme based on expediency and pragmatism' (Knight & Ward, 2012, p. 179) and query whether the new route enables staff to 'make complex judgements in unpredictable and uncertain circumstances … to think, analyse and reflect, confident in the depth of knowledge and understanding that they can bring to their practice' (Knight & Ward, 2012, p. 174).…”