Probation Staffing Crisis Continues at Massive Cost to Tax Payers and Staff
This week saw the end of the 35 Probation Trusts in England and Wales and the start of a new organisation the National Probation Service and 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies; but both organisations still lack the staff to fill the vacancies and allocate cases to ensure safe supervision of offenders in all risk categories (500 vacancies across England and Wales according to an FOI submitted by the Labour party). So desperate is the Ministry of Justice to find new staff that they issued an advert in this week’s Guardian. The advert is calling for Probation Officers from Australia and New Zealand currently living in the UK to apply for temporary jobs in the two organisations. They are offering a significantly higher hourly rate than existing staff.
An existing Probation Officer with 10 years’ experience is currently on approximately £17 per hour which equates to £30,000 per annum; out of which they make pension contributions. New Zealand and Australian staff are being offered up to £27 per hour which equates to approximately £50,000 per annum with no pension contributions as they won’t be entitled to join the LGPS. That is the salary of a high band Assistant Chief Officer.
The recruitment drive is being run by an agency. That means on top of the £27 per hour to the employee the Government will also have to pay a fee to the agency. UK Probation staff have been subject to a four year pay freeze, limiting their ability to climb up through the extremely long pay scales.
Existing Probation Officers undergo two years intensive training which includes a BA Honours in Community Justice. In contrast New Zealand Probation Officers receive just 6 weeks training. UK Probation officers are recognised the world over for their high level of skills, knowledge and experience. Historically, Australia and New Zealand have been at the forefront of recruitment drives within the UK as they have sought to use the expertise of British practitioners to improve their own correctional services.
The MOJ has assured Napo that it is actively recruiting 400 trainee Probation Officers to start in the autumn, however, the MOJ website still refers to 35 Probation Trusts and gives no details of how to apply for any vacancies.
Questions you may wish to ask the Secretary of State
- How many Probation Officers is the MOJ recruiting and how much will this cost the UK taxpayer?
- Has this additional expense been factored into the overall cost of the TR programme?
- When does the Minister envisage both organisations being fully staffed on a permanent basis?