SOME work by probation staff in Durham needs to improve, an inspection report has said.

In 2014 the former Durham Tees Valley Probation Trust was abolished as part of the Government’s ‘Transforming Rehabilitation’ programme and replaced by a combination of the National Probation Service (NPS) and a privately-run Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC).

Dame Glenys Stacy, Chief Inspector of Probation, said staff from both organisations were working well together, but needed to improve the quality of some of their work.

The NPS has responsibility for managing offenders posing a high risk of serious harm to others and staffing the courts, while any remaining probation services are handled by the CRC.

The report said the quality of some core probation work carried out by the CRC had deteriorated and

“reducing reoffending and protecting the public outcomes were less likely to be achieved”.

It said although some aspects of court work needed to improve, overall work carried out by the NPS was good quality, helped by an experienced workforce and able management.

Inspectors praised an initiative involving the police and NPS – Checkpoint – which they said was diverting “low level” first time offenders from the criminal justice system.

But they said the standard of “on the day” pre-sentence reports prepared for use in the courts by NPS staff was not good enough.

Recommendations included fuller training for pre-sentence report writers and improving the quality of management oversight and supervision of responsible officers working within the CRC.

Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said the break-up of the public probation service and the increasing involvement of the private sector was concern.

Mr Neilson said: “The fear is that inspections of probation in other areas of the country will uncover similar problems.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Public protection and reducing reoffending will always be our priority.

“Early indications show that the performance of the new probation service is continuing to improve and work is already under way to address any concerns. The report highlights a number of positive initiatives at Durham, which staff will continue to build on in the coming months.”