Protecting the public
Supervising offenders in the community
NOMS ensures close monitoring and supervision of offenders who pose a risk to the community.
There are around 210,000 offenders in the Probation Service's caseload.
Around 150,000 are managed in the community. They will either be on licence, where they have been released from custody, or on a community order.
How offenders are managed in the community
Every offender will have an offender manager (usually a probation officer).
If an offender is to be managed in the community, the offender manager will complete a full assessment of:
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his or her needs (for example, if they need help with employment or accommodation)
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his or her risk of harm to others (including to previous victims)
A sentence plan is drawn up with each offender and where there are positive indicators of risk of harm to the public, the offender manager draws up a risk management plan.
It is the job of the offender manager to manage the offender's risks in order to ensure that:
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he or she is complying with the licence conditions or requirements of the community order
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he or she is attending programmes to address offending behaviour
In supervising offenders, offender managers have a duty to protect the public, including previous victims.
More resources to supervise offenders at high risk of harm
How often an offender manager sees an offender will depend on the risk of harm.
The highest risk offenders are seen at least once a week for the first 16 weeks and after that as often as is necessary to manage the risk of harm effectively, but at least once a month.
Recalling offenders to custody
If the offender manager is aware that an offender is not complying with their licence, for example if the offender has absconded from an Approved Premises (new window) or is not attending programmes, the offender manager is expected to recall the offender to custody.
For example, a paedophile on licence might be required to live in an Approved Premises and to be indoors at school opening and closing times. If the offender is not there at these times, the offender manager should take immediate action to recall the offender to custody.
The higher the risk, the more immediate the recall action.
The offender manager then notifies the Home Office of the breach of licence. The Home Office agrees to revoke the licence and instructs the police to arrest the offender.
Registered sex offenders, the most serious sexual and violent offenders and high risk of harm offenders are supervised by the offender manager within the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) (new window).
