PAROLE ASSESSMENT REPORTS Probation

PURPOSE
™ To provide guidance on preparation of Parole Assessment Reports by
both Home and Seconded Probation Officers, including handy checklists
Circular
and templates REFERENCE NO:
™ To emphasise the importance of work with this category of offender in 34/2004
the context of the National Probation Service’s public protection function
™ To consider briefly the changes anticipated following implementation of ISSUE DATE:
the Criminal Justice Act and the eventual transition to NOMS. 10 June 2004

ACTION IMPLEMENTATION DATE:

Chief Officers are asked to:
Immediate
™ draw the attention of all relevant staff, including those working in
Approved Premises, to this circular and the guidance it covers;
EXPIRY DATE:
™ review the priority and level of resources allocated to this area of work.
June 2009 or until replaced
SUMMARY
TO:
Probation Parole Assessment Reports are crucial in the Parole Board’s
decision-making process. Together, the seconded and home officers’ Chairs of Probation Boards
reports provide a view of the prisoner’s time in custody; identify and interpret Chief Officers of Probation
the risks posed upon release; and contribute to the process of planning how Secretaries of Probation Boards
risk can be managed. They offer the Board the main basis upon which to
make its decision to release. Their timeliness, accuracy and focus are CC:
therefore crucial, and in providing them the probation service is achieving its Board Treasurers
primary aims: to protect the public and reduce the risk of re-offending. Regional Managers

RELEVANT PREVIOUS PROBATION CIRCULARS AUTHORISED BY:

42/2003: Parole, Licence and Recall Arrangements Liz Hill, Head, Public Protection
13/2003: Sharing information to inform decisions on offender release & recall and Courts Unit

CONTACT FOR ENQUIRIES ATTACHED:

About this circular: Annex 1: Good Practice
Jo Thompson, Assistant Chief Officer: 020 7217 8823 or Guidance on Probation Reports
Matthew Bird, Policy Manager: 020 7217 8058 for the Release of Determinate
The Home Office Early Release and Recall Section own policy on parole and Sentence Prisoners
are custodians of the parole process. General queries should be referred to:
Simon Greenwood: 020 7217 5861 or
Peter Charlesworth: 020 7217 5313

National Probation Directorate

Horseferry House, Dean Ryle Street, London, SW1P 2AW General Enquiries: 020 7217 0659 Fax: 020 7217 0660

Enforcement, rehabilitation and public protection

BACKGROUND
Parole Assessment Reports (PAR) are important because the offenders to whom they relate will often be among the more
dangerous supervised by the probation service. The protection of the public is one of the functions of the National
Probation Service as set out in legislation. The production of good PARs is a major contribution to public protection and
this area of work should therefore be accorded a high priority. Nevertheless, worryingly, in recent months the Parole
Board has reported a consistent downturn in both the quality and timeliness of PARs from some areas. This downturn is
supported by other sources of information.

2. The NPD has therefore been working with the Board to produce the guidance attached to this circular, which
comprises:
™ explanatory good practice guidance;
™ handy checklists for officers based both in prisons and in the community who write PARs; and
™ templates setting out required information and headings for reports.
Probation staff may not be aware that, as of 1 April 2004, the Parole Board no longer routinely interviews prisoners
applying for parole. The importance of the PAR in informing the Board’s decisions is therefore magnified.

PURPOSE
3. The guidance clarifies and, to some extent, rationalises the respective roles of the home and seconded probation
officers. It is intended that this guidance will resolve some of the uncertainty about the purpose of PARs and the
information that is required by the Parole Board.

4. It is not intended that Parole Board panels should be provided with a copy of the OASys by the National Probation
Service. The purpose of the PAR is to provide the board with a summary of the probation service’s assessment of the
risks posed by an offender and of how those risks will be managed in the community. Provision of an OASys is a poor
substitute for a Parole Assessment Report.

5. It should be noted that the decision to release the offender is for the Board. PARs always need to include details of
what plans are in place for managing risk in the community.

6. The judgements about risk which are central to the production of PARs mean
a) that there is a limit to the degree of automation which can be employed in their production; and
b) that staff of probation officer grade should be responsible for producing the assessment and judgement
sections of the reports (though it may be possible for other grades to have some input in the report).

7. We are also aware that some Areas have instituted blanket bans on travelling to interview offenders in custody. This
type of blanket approach is not acceptable. It appears that the likelihood of compliance with licence conditions and the
aims of supervision is significantly enhanced when there has been personal contact between the offender and the home
probation officer. There is an expectation that such contact should be the norm. This means that where the offender is
not known to the home probation officer, a visit should normally take place. Alternatives to attending prisons, such as
video conferencing should be pursued wherever possible where the offender is known to the home probation officer.
However, it should be recognised that these are a poor substitute for an interview in person and should never be used
where the offender poses a high or very high risk.

ACTION
8. NPD will continue to work with the Parole Board to identify areas for improvement and the need for further guidance in
light of forthcoming changes. The Board will be establishing its own monitoring arrangements in consultation with the
NPD and poor as well as good performance will be reported.
™ Chief Officers should ensure that every officer of whatever grade involved in the production of parole assessment
reports has a copy of the attached guidance;
™ Chief Officers should ensure that PARs are produced using the templates attached to the guidance at
Appendices 2 and 4 (or locally produced equivalents, subject to the same information being provided);
™ A description of contact with the offender should be included in every home officer’s PAR and a decision to
produce a report without undertaking an interview must be documented in the report.
™ Boards, together with Chief Officers, should ensure that arrangements are in place to monitor both the timeliness
of PARs against National Standards and the advice in this circular concerning personal knowledge of the
prisoner.

FORTHCOMING DEVELOPMENTS
Criminal Justice Act 2003
9. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 will bring significant developments around custodial sentences and post-release
supervision, which will have consequences for the arrangements around recall and parole.

PC34/2004 - Parole Assessment Reports 2

10. The new dangerousness sentences include, in addition to the existing mandatory and discretionary life sentences:
™ a new extended sentence, which replaces the existing provisions; and
™ a new sentence of imprisonment for public protection.
These new sentences will certainly continue to require reports akin to the current PARs.

11. However, offenders serving custodial sentences of 12 months or longer will be released automatically at the half-way
point unless they are serving one of the new ‘dangerousness’ sentences (see below). This will mean that the Parole
Board will no longer have any input into the decision to release an offender. In the majority of cases there will therefore
be no need for parole assessment reports in future. Offenders will be subject to supervision (and, therefore, recall) for the
entirety of the remaining sentence. Where such offenders are recalled, the Parole Board will review the decision to recall
and a report from the probation service will be required.

Parole Board
12. In future, the Parole Board will specify more clearly what information it requires. This guidance, which has been
prepared in consultation with the Board, is a first step in that direction. In future, however, the Board will be departing
from its current practice of making a decision in cases where information has not been supplied. Rather, it will be
introducing a quality control mechanism in respect of the information which is provided and inadequate information / risk
assessment from Probation Areas (or from other contributors to the Parole Dossier) will be rejected.

NOMS
13. The Report of the Correctional Services Review (Carter Report) will result in the creation of NOMS, a single
organisation bringing together the existing Prison and Probation Services. A "new approach to offender management"
lies at the heart of this thinking. Sentences are to be managed with greater cohesion, with better end-to-end continuity
and with a whole-sentence, whole-person perspective. In order to achieve this there will need to be some radical re-
designing of processes and tasks. Each existing task will need to be assessed for its fit with the vision, and some re-
designed or re-allocated. This may well affect the existing inter-locking responsibilities for PARs.

Liz Hill
Head, Public Protection and Courts Unit

PC34/2004 - Parole Assessment Reports 3

Probation Reports for the Release of
Determinate Sentence Prisoners

Good Practice Guidance

 Probation Reports for the release of
Determinate Sentence Prisoners

Good Practice Guidance

CONTENTS PAGE
1. Purpose 3
2. Introduction 3
3. The Home Secretary’s Directions to the Parole Board 3
4. The Parole Process 4
THE PROBATION REPORTS
5. Introduction 4
6. Seconded Officer’s Parole Assessment Report 5
7. Home Officer’s Parole Assessment Report 5
RELATED MATTERS
8. The Risk Management Plan 6
9. Licence Conditions 7

Appendix 1 Checklist for Seconded Officer Parole Assessment Report 9

Appendix 2 Standard format for Seconded Officer Parole Assessment Report 11
Appendix 3 Checklist for Home Officer Parole Assessment Report 12
Appendix 4 Standard format for Home Officer Parole Assessment Report 14
Appendix 5 Guidance on Licence Conditions 15
Appendix 6 The Home Secretary’s Directions to the Parole Board 19

ii
 Good Practice Guidance for Probation Reports on the release of
Determinate Sentence Prisoners

1. Purpose
1.1 This guidance deals with the role of probation staff in producing the two
separate reports which inform the Parole Board’s decisions (those produced by
probation staff seconded to prisons and those in the home probation area). It is
designed to set out good practice in producing reports for the Parole Board, with a
view to assuring the production of consistent and well focussed reports which provide
sound assessments of risk that contribute towards effective decision making by the
Board.

2. Introduction
2.1 The Parole Assessment Reports (PARs), i.e. the Seconded Officer’s Parole
Assessment Report and the Home Officer’s Parole Assessment Report (the HOPAR
and SOPAR) compiled by the National Probation Service (NPS) make an extremely
important contribution to the Parole Board’s decision whether to release a
determinate sentenced prisoner. The NPS has the statutory responsibility and the
expertise to supervise offenders released on parole licence.

2.2 The content of the PARs is therefore of central importance to both the NPS
and the Board. The two factors critical to the value of the PARs are:
™ their timeliness; and
™ the clarity with which all the relevant information and professional judgement
of the officer writing the report is expressed.
The lack of timely and correct information may place both the Board and NPS at risk
of successful legal challenge were it to result in a prisoner losing the chance for
release on parole or being released inappropriately.

3. The Home Secretary’s Directions to the Parole Board

3.1 The Parole Board is bound by the Home Secretary’s Directions regarding the
release of determinate sentence prisoners. New Directions took effect on 1 May 2004
and incorporate a number of changes. The new Directions are attached at Appendix
6 to this document for information.

3.2 The key points for probation staff preparing Parole Assessment Reports to
note are the requirements on the Parole Board:

™ first and foremost, to consider whether the prisoner will commit a further
offence between the date of release on parole and the non parole date i.e. a
shorter term risk; and
™ to balance that shorter term risk against the potential reduction in longer term
risk accruing from a longer period of supervision.

3.3 Public protection is the over-riding consideration for the Board and it must take
into account that safeguarding the public may often outweigh the benefits to the
prisoner of early release. The Board will, however, take account of any progress
made in custody set against the whole picture presented of the offender in terms of
previous patterns of offending, attitudes to authority, and compliance with

1
supervision. The Board will be looking for consideration of these factors in a robust,
structured release plan that will provide support, oversight and focussed work
designed to reduce the risk of re-offending and of harm.

4. The Parole Process

4.1 The Parole Board relies entirely on the contents of the parole dossier to make
its decision – there are no other sources of information available to it. The only
information in the dossier is:
™ the indictment and Judge’s remarks;
™ a list of previous convictions;
™ Prison assessment and supporting papers i.e. sentence planning
documentation, reports from completed programmes, and adjudications;
™ Prison medical report;
™ A psychiatric/psychological assessment where appropriate;
™ Seconded Officer’s Parole Assessment Report (SOPAR);
™ Home Officer’s Parole Assessment Report (HOPAR).

4.2 The Board looks to the probation reports (emboldened above) for:
™ substantive information about offenders, their offending, their progress in
prison;
™ an up to date assessment of risk and information about how it will be managed
on release, as part of a resettlement plan; and
™ judgements about prisoners’:
™ motivation;
™ ability to change; and
™ whether they can sustain that change upon release.

THE PROBATION REPORTS

5. Introduction
5.1 The probation reports are crucial to the Board’s decision-making process.
They need to complement and not duplicate each other, offering two distinct
perspectives on the information available and providing, between them, a composite
judgement of the prisoner. Given the necessity for the production of two reports, it is
important for the purposes of resource management that factual information in the
two reports is not duplicated.

5.2 The prison reports provide information about what has happened during the
sentence. In producing the SOPAR, the seconded probation officer needs to
interpret them in terms of real change and motivation, not just presenting behaviour.

5.3 Where prisoners deny their offence(s), this does not mean that they are not
eligible for early release. Special care must be taken to establish the exact nature of
the denial, and its impact on the way the prisoner has dealt with their sentence. The
emphasis of the Parole Board is always on the level of risk they pose upon release
and the likelihood of re-offending during the period of parole. Where there is
evidence that risk has been lowered, or has been assessed as manageable in the
community, the denial of the offence may be irrelevant. Denial may, however,
contribute to making an assessment of risk impossible or to a conclusion that the risk
posed is too high. It is, however, the assessment of risk rather than the denial that

2
precludes the prisoner from early release. Probation reports therefore need to
ensure they focus on the level of risk, and associated factors, rather than on the
denial.

5.4 In producing the HOPAR, the home probation officer needs to assess the
prisoner’s likely behaviour in the community in light of the seconded officer’s view of
the prisoner’s time inside. The HOPAR therefore needs to outline the support and
framework needed to ensure he or she completes the licence satisfactorily.

6. Seconded Officer’s Report

6.1 These reports are essential in interpreting prison reports and providing an
overview of prison-based staff’s experience of the prisoner. The seconded officer’s
analysis of the prisoner’s behaviour and progress in custody needs to be set in the
context of his or her underlying motivation, which is a key indicator of the level of risk
posed. The seconded probation officer is in a good position for example:
™ to provide an explanation when a prisoner reacts against the prison system; or
™ to raise questions about apparent compliance when a prisoner has worked
through to open conditions with glowing reports.
The seconded officer’s judgement about an offender’s compliance should be clearly
reflected in the report.

6.2 The Board needs the following information to be evident from the seconded
officer’s report:
™ An interpretation and analysis of prison behaviour, including sentence plan,
adjudications, impact of offending behaviour work and other relevant risk
reduction work such as literacy and vocational qualifications .
™ An analysis of the offender’s motivation to change and sustain an offence-free
lifestyle upon release. This assessment must be based not only upon
prisoners’ stated intent but should include some analysis of his or her ability to
achieve this.
™ An assessment of whether licence conditions might strengthen and sustain a
prisoner’s motivation to change.

6.3 Appendix 1 is a checklist setting out details of what officers producing reports
should consider and appendix 2 provides a template for the production of reports.

7. Home Officer’s Parole Assessment Report

7.1 A HOPAR provides a different but equally important perspective on prisoners
and the level of risk they pose. It should include an assessment of the level of risk
(normally using OASys) and make judgements about it which should flow into the
production of the risk management element of a resettlement plan. The report must
be credible and robust enough for the Board to make its final decision about release.
Anything less places the community at risk, compromises the Parole Board and
exposes the Probation Service to the risk of legal challenge.

7.2 The HOPAR is crucial in the Board’s decision-making process as it offers the
only external perspective of individual prisoners and the environment they will be
returning to. Reports must, therefore:
™ be timely, in line with national standards;

3
 ™ be explicit, drawing conclusions from the available information regarding the
offence, previous conviction, and past history, including breaches of licence,
bail and community penalties, and not just a description of it;
™ be based on informed knowledge of individual prisoners, having met them
personally (video conferencing will count as a personal meeting), and their
progression in prison, taking into account responses to courses, and prison
reports; and
™ above all must demonstrate that a full risk assessment has been undertaken
and professional judgement used in coming to a conclusion about the level of
risk of re-offending and risk of harm and a realistic assessment of the
likelihood the offender’s risk can be managed in the community.

7.3 The Board needs the following information to be evident from the HOPAR:
™ Previous convictions and offending history, including any evidence of patterns
of offending and any previous relevant history / personal background that
informs the reasons for offending;
™ A list of offending-related factors (such as problematic drink or drug use) that
provides a full understanding of all triggers to offending behaviour. In
particular, instances of violence, and the targeting of certain types of victim
should be mentioned;
™ Offence analysis: i.e. a full account of the offence(s) , including any mitigating
and aggravating factors;
™ Responses to previous custody / supervision, and attitude to authority
(including the relationship with the supervising officer);
™ Victim awareness / empathy (understanding the impact of the offence on the
victim or his / her family) and any future risk to the victim, family and friends;
™ An assessment of the offender’s motivation to change and sustain an offence-
free lifestyle upon release. This assessment must be based not only upon a
prisoner’s stated intent but should include a realistic analysis of his ability to
achieve this;
™ The content of the resettlement plan including a risk management plan and
supervision plan (see section 9) and appropriate licence conditions reflecting,
where appropriate, the wishes of the victim.

7.4 Appendix 3 is a checklist setting out details of what officers producing reports
should consider and appendix 4 provides a template for the production of reports.

RELATED MATTERS

8. The Risk Management Plan

8.1 The risk management plan is the most important part of the resettlement plan.
It needs to relate directly to the risk assessment, must be realistic and offer a
professional and informed judgement of the prisoner. Where specific risks have
been identified, a structured resettlement plan should contain clear indicators of the
degree of monitoring and oversight necessary under supervision – it is on this basis
that the Parole Board decides to release the offender.

8.2 The Board cannot decide to release a prisoner unless an adequate release
address has been identified. In many cases Approved Premises will be the most
appropriate accommodation on release. However, where an address has been
identified by the offender , the home probation officer must have made appropriate

4
checks and an assessment in light of the risk posed by that prisoner. The home
probation officer cannot wait to see whether parole is granted – or that the panel is
minded to grant it – before looking for a suitable address.

9. Licence Conditions
9.1 Appendix 5 contains a copy of the guidance on licence conditions set out in
Probation Circular 42 / 2003.

9.2 Licence conditions must support and underpin the activities identified in the
resettlement plan and address the risks posed by the prisoner. While work
undertaken in the prison often needs reinforcement in the community, the focus in
prison may sometimes have been on a single aspect, such as drugs, rather than on
all elements of offending behaviour. Proposals for licence conditions may be the
result of having identified unmet needs and a means of addressing these, or they
may be a continuation of work begun in prison. In either case, requests for any
additional licence conditions should be clearly related to the risk assessment.

9.4 Refusal or reluctance by the prisoner to agree to a residence condition must

be considered as a relevant risk factor. It is essential for reports to indicate the
prisoner’s agreement to a residence condition where such is proposed (other than
the standard ‘as approved’ condition).

9.4 A proposed licence condition recommending medical treatment must name

the psychiatrist / psychologist / medical officer who will provide the treatment.

9.5 Wherever possible a proposed licence condition recommending that an

offender undertakes a particular course / programme should confirm that the offender
meets the assessment criteria for the proposed course / programme. References to
proposed assessment on release or to potential offending behaviour work should not
generally be the subject of requests for licence conditions until confirmed. If
necessary, such conditions can always be added to the licence at a later stage.

9.6 Requests for non-contact conditions require specific names of victims and / or
family members. Requests for exclusion conditions must establish that the exclusion
area is proportionate and give a precise definition of the area concerned (with an
attached map). It should be noted, however, that where the victim has a new identity
this must be protected by the report writer. In some instances for example, an
exclusion area might identify where a victim is now living under a new identity.

9.7 If parole is not recommended at this review consider whether there will be a
further review before the non-parole date (NPD) (6½ years is the trigger point for a
second review). If this is the only/final review, recommendations for the modification
of the Release Plan and licence conditions for supervision on NPD licence should be
included.

5
 Appendix 1
CHECKLIST: SECONDED OFFICER’S PAROLE ASSESSMENT REPORT

NB: Bulleted points are intended to act as an aide memoire or

checklist rather than setting out the required content of a SOPAR.

1. SOURCES
™ What previous contact have you had with the prisoner?
™ Have you discussed this report with the home Probation Officer?
™ Have you discussed this report with prison staff?
™ What documents/files have you consulted?
™ What information is missing (e.g. CPS papers)?

2. RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE OFFENDER AND THE OFFENCE

The home probation officer should include a full offence analysis. However the
seconded officer should contribute to the overall picture of the offender by
giving the prison perspective.
™ Does the offender’s account of the offence differ from other/previous
accounts?
™ What patterns or cycles have been identified from the offending behaviour?
™ What explanation does the offender give for his or her offending?
™ What is the current attitude of the offender towards the victim / impact of the
offence?
™ What development of insight has there been during the sentence?

3. BEHAVIOUR AND PROGRESS IN CUSTODY

™ What are the specific sentence planning objectives?
™ Why were they selected and what is the offender’s attitude to them?
™ Specify what is outstanding and why.
™ How far have sentence planning objectives been met?
™ What is the level of insight achieved?
™ What is the level of motivation to change/achieve the objectives?
™ Specify what offending behaviour work has been completed.
™ Identify any evidence of impact from programmes.
™ What education has taken place during sentence, have any qualifications
been gained?
™ What is the assessment of the offender’s level of literacy and numeracy?
™ What employment has the offender undertaken during sentence?
™ Are there significant reasons for transfer between prisons? What is the
prisoner’s current regime level / status?
™ Is there a pattern of adjudications? Do these relate to risk areas?
™ What is the record of MDTs?
™ What community support / visits from friends, family or others has the offender
had during sentence? What impact will this have on the offender’s motivation
to comply with any licence?

1
4. MEDICAL, PSYCHIATRIC AND PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS
It is important to identify:
™ any physical or mental health issues about which you have concerns;
™ information relevant to planning, or resources, if custody is to continue;
™ information that should be considered in the planning for safe release.

5. RISK ASSESSMENT AND RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN

Risk Assessment and the risk management plan should be covered extensively
in the HOPAR but seconded officers should make it clear they are aware of the
risks and the plan for managing them so that they can comment on its potential
efficacy. The Seconded Probation Officer should identify:
™ Whether the offender is a MAPPA offender and what level of risk management
has been undertaken in the prison.
™ Whether the offender is a Schedule 1 offender.
™ Whether PSO 4400 has been applied, and relevant actions taken.
™ What impact these may have on the risk assessment and management plan
envisaged by the Home Probation Officer.

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

™ Do you recommend parole, in light of the home probation officer’s assessment
of the feasibility of managing the risks in the community (risk management
plan) (N.B. only prisoners sentenced to 6½ years and over receive a second
parole review)?
™ Do you recommend any further risk management measures, including licence
conditions?

7. SIGNATURE AND DATE

™ Include any countersigning or quality assurance references.

2
 Appendix 2

SECONDED OFFICER’S PAROLE ASSESSMENT REPORT

Full name of prisoner
Prisoner’s date of birth
Prisoner’s current location
Prison Number
Parole Board Reference Number
Index Offence
Sentencing Court
Date of Sentence
Length of Sentence
NPD: PED: LED: SED:

Seconded Probation Officer’s (SPO)

name
SPO’s office address

SPO’s telephone number(s)

SPO’s fax number
Reports or other documents attached

1. SOURCES

2. RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE OFFENDER AND THE OFFENCE

3. BEHAVIOUR AND PROGRESS IN CUSTODY

4. MEDICAL, PSYCHIATRIC AND PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS

5. RISK ASSESSMENT AND RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

7. SIGNATURE AND DATE

 Appendix 3

HOME OFFICER’S PAROLE ASSESSMENT REPORT CHECKLIST

NB: Bulleted points are intended to act as an aide memoire or

checklist rather than setting out the required content of a HOPAR.
1. SOURCES
™ Length and level of involvement with the prisoner.
™ What is the relationship of the prisoner to the supervising officer?
™ Have you seen the prisoner for the purpose of this report?
™ Have you discussed this report with the seconded Probation Officer?
™ What are your other relevant sources e.g. previous records?
™ What information is missing e.g. previous convictions?
™ Have you undertaken a home visit / has the release address been checked?
™ Specify any contribution you have made in relation to sentence planning for the prisoner.

2. RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE OFFENDER AND THE INDEX OFFENCE

™ Offence analysis, including aggravating and mitigating circumstances, culpability,
premeditation, victim details.
™ Identify any pattern of offending and relate it to the current offence
™ Underlying factors which contribute to offending (from OASys)
™ Assess the offender’s attitude to:
™ the offence: level of understanding, remorse, acceptance of responsibility
™ the victim: victim awareness/empathy
™ authority: compliance with previous supervision, particularly on previous licences or
temporary release.
™ Assess the offender’s motivation to change; take into account prison reports on work
completed during sentence and responses to previous supervision including work done to
address offending behaviour .

3. VICTIM INFORMATION
Where the victim(s) have requested that their concerns about an offender’s release be withheld
from the offender, or you judge on the basis of continued risk that this should happen, such
information should be forwarded separately with a request to the Parole Board for the
information to be withheld from the offender.
™ Set out what contact there has been between the report writer and the Victim Liaison Officer.
™ If there is no victim contact information, state the reasons.
™ Where relevant, describe the relationship of the offender to the victim.
™ Attach the Victim Liaison Officer’s Report if available.
™ If a Victim Personal Statement was made (implemented from Autumn 2001), it should be
reviewed for the purpose of this assessment.
™ Whether or not there are CPS papers, victim reports or statements to refer to, assess the
impact of the offence on the victim.
™ Assess the continuing risk to the victim(s) and provide supporting evidence for your
conclusions. This will form part of the risk assessment and management plan, in particular the
formulation of licence conditions to address the risks you identify and better protect the
victim(s).
™ Assess the attitude of the wider community to the offender, based on the circumstances at the
time the offence was committed and your current local knowledge, and the potential impact
this might have on parole.
™ Assess whether any information in the report is to be kept confidential and not disclosed to the
prisoner.

4. RISK ASSESSMENT
™ Summarise:
™ the results of the OASys assessment of the offender’s risk of re-offending and risk of
harm, providing the date an assessment was last completed;

1
 ™ any psychological checklists or other assessment tools, Risk Matrix 2000 if appropriate;
and
™ any relevant reports from other agencies such as the police and health services.
™ It is important to identify clearly the specific risks presented:
™ Is the offender a MAPPA offender?
™ What is the nature of the risk?
™ To whom does the offender pose a risk?
™ How soon, in your assessment, will the offender pose a risk?
™ What, in your assessment, is likely to happen?
™ Is there one or more locations where the offender will pose a specific risk?
™ What are the identified immediate triggers, or underlying factors?
™ What are the indicators, warning signs?
™ What existing controls / supports are in place?
™ What will happen if they are absent?
™ What potential controls are in place, (include the impact of any potential supervision)?

5. RESETTLEMENT PLAN
The resettlement plan comprises the risk management and supervision plans. These will form
the basis of supervision on release and should build on any work undertaken in custody. The
risk management plan must address the specific risks identified and provide a feasible plan for
managing them which includes: confirmed accommodation details, planned offending
behaviour work, specific and targeted licence conditions (see appendix 5), specific victim
protection plans, planned treatment (with a named treatment provider) where appropriate.

A) RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN

™ The risk management plan must specify, in respect of each of the proposed actions to address
an identified risk:
™ What is the risk?
™ What is the objective (of the proposed actions to reduce or manage the risk)?
™ How should it be achieved:
™ What action will be taken?
™ By whom?
™ By when?
™ Is there a contingency/alternative?
™ At what level does this offender’s risk need to be managed, and are arrangements appropriate
to the level of risk in place to manage and monitor the offender.
™ Outline the offender’s response to these plans and assess his or her ability to comply with
them. Include an account of the relationship between the supervising officer and offender
insofar as it will have an impact on the likelihood of compliance.

B) SUPERVISION PLAN
™ In addition to the risk management plan, outline the areas of work to address the underlying
factors identified in OASys that could reduce the risk of re-offending and support the re-
settlement of the offender, including:
™ Employment skills work
™ Training
™ Relationship building
™ Treatment programmes.

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

™ Sum up your view of the feasibility of parole;
™ Provide a clear recommendation either way;
™ drawing on:
™ the assessment of risk,
™ the risk management plan, and
™ your assessment of the offender’s ability to comply with parole licence.

7. SIGNATURE AND DATE

™ Include any countersigning or quality assurance references.

2
 Appendix 4

HOME OFFICER’S PAROLE ASSESSMENT REPORT

Name of prisoner
Prison
Prison Number
Parole Board Reference Number
Index Offence
Sentencing Court
Date of Sentence
Length of Sentence
Report Writer’s Name
Supervising Probation Officer’s
Name*
Report Writer’s office address

Report Writer’s telephone numbers

Report Writer’s fax number

*(if different)

1. SOURCES

2. RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE OFFENDER AND THE INDEX OFFENCE

3. VICTIM INFORMATION

4. RISK ASSESSMENT

5. RESETTLEMENT PLAN
™ RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN
™ SUPERVISION PLAN

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

7. SIGNATURE AND DATE

 Appendix 5
GUIDANCE ON LICENCE CONDITIONS

This guidance is contained in Probation Circular 42 / 2003

1. Prisoners are released on the standard licence containing the following

amended conditions of supervision:

While under supervision you must:

(i) keep in touch with your supervising officer in accordance with any
instructions that you may be given;
(ii) if required, receive visits from your supervising officer at your home ;
(iii) permanently reside at an address approved by your supervising officer
and notify him or her in advance of any proposed change of address or
any proposed stay (even for one night) away from that approved
address;
(iv) undertake only such work (including voluntary work) approved by your
supervising officer and notify him or her in advance of any proposed
change;
(v) not to travel outside the United Kingdom without the prior permission of
your supervising officer (which will be given in exceptional circumstances
only);
(vi) to be well behaved, not to commit any offence and to not to do anything
which could undermine the purposes of your supervision, which are to
protect the public, prevent you from re-offending and help you resettle
successfully into the community.

2. The following conditions can also be imposed by the governor of a prison in

the case of short term offenders or by the Parole Board in the case of long term
offenders. All requests for additional conditions, whether to the Parole Board or to
the governor, must be accompanied by a full explanation.

While under supervision you must:

(i) attend all appointments arranged for you with [....INSERT NAME....],
who is a psychiatrist/psychologist/medical practitioner, and co-operate
fully with any care or treatment they recommend
(ii) not to take work or other organised activity which will involve a person
under the age of .... either on a professional or voluntary basis;
(iii) permanently reside at (name and address eg hostel) and must not
leave to reside elsewhere without obtaining the prior approval of your
supervising officer; thereafter you must reside as directed by your
supervising officer;
(iv) not to reside (nor even to stay for one night) in the same household as
any children under the age of ...;
(v) not to seek to approach or communicate with [INSERT NAME OF
VICTIM AND/OR FAMILY MEMBERS] without the prior approval of
your supervising officer/and name of appropriate social services
department;
(vi) comply with any requirements specified by your supervising officer for
the purpose of ensuring that you address your alcohol / drug / sexual /

1
 gambling / solvent abuse / anger / debt / offending behaviour problems
/ at the name of course / centre where appropriate.

3. It is important to note that where a supervising officer requires an offender to

attend upon a psychiatrist/psychologist/medical practitioner, he or she must be
named and must be willing to treat the offender concerned. Similarly, where a
supervising officer wants a condition preventing the offender from contacting his
victims or victims’ families, the individuals must be named on the licence. In cases
where the victim has changed his or her name, it is acceptable for the condition to
use the name of the victim as known to the offender, as opposed to the current
name. The test to be applied is whether it is sufficiently certain that it is quite clear to
the offender “who” is being described in the condition (whatever name is used). In
cases where a Probation Area has considered a reside “as directed” condition and
ruled it out, it would be helpful to the Parole Board if a brief explanation why this
condition is not being requested is included in the PAR.

4. Exceptionally, other conditions may be added to a licence. In the case of

short term prisoners, such conditions can be added by the Governor but only after
consultation with the Early Release and Recall Section (ERRS). In the case of
long term prisoners the Parole Board will consider requests for additional conditions.
Please note that any additional condition in respect of a long term prisoner
which has not been approved by the Parole Board is not lawful and cannot be
enforced. In determining whether an extended sentence prisoner is a long term
prisoner for the purpose of licence conditions, you are required to take into account
the whole sentence, including the extension period.

5. All Requests for any non-standard additional conditions, for both short term
and long term prisoners must be accompanied by a full explanation. ERRS is willing
to offer advice to supervising officers before a formal request is made. ERRS can
only grant a request for an additional non-standard condition if it is lawful. To be
lawful the condition has to be both necessary and proportionate. Necessary
means that no other means of managing a particular risk is available or
appropriate; and proportionate means that the restriction on the offender’s
liberty is the minimum required to manage the risk. It should be noted that the
standard licence conditions already contain sufficient authority to manage most risks
in the community. In the case of long term prisoners where an additional condition
has been considered but rejected, it would be helpful if this could be highlighted in
the report requesting approval for additional licence conditions and an explanation
given to the Parole Board. In requesting additional conditions, Chief Officers are
asked to bring the following advice to the attention of relevant staff.

(a) Request for exclusion conditions

6. Requests for a licence condition which excludes an offender from a particular

area or locality have to be carefully considered in order to be lawful. Once the
exclusion is shown to be necessary, it is critical to establish that it is proportionate. In
considering this it will be helpful to take into account such factors as whether, for
example, the offender has family or friends whom he might visit who live within the
exclusion area and where the exclusion would restrict his ability to work or to visit the
doctor or dentist. Although the fact that an exclusion condition may have this effect
might be relevant, it is not determinative in deciding whether the proposed condition
is reasonable.

2
7. In addition, the exclusion area must be defined precisely to be lawful. A
blanket ban on entering a large town, for example, will not necessarily always be
acceptable. The exclusion zone should be no bigger than is reasonably necessary to
achieve the objective sought, which will usually be to prevent contact with the victim
or victim’s family. To define the exclusion area as clearly and precisely as possible it
is necessary to draw the boundaries on a map or on a diagram. The area needs also
to be clearly defined to the offender so that he is in no doubt where the exclusion
zone begins and ends.

8. Where a request for an exclusion condition is granted, it should be worded as

follows: “Not to enter..., which is defined in the attached map, without obtaining the
permission of your supervising officer”. This will enable the offender to enter the area
if it becomes necessary but only with the express permission of the supervising
officer.

(b) Offender whose risk levels increases by consuming alcohol

9. Conditions prohibiting the consumption of alcohol, either on or off hostel

premises are very difficult to enforce and it is difficult to argue legally that limited
alcohol consumption should lead to recall to prison. Condition (vi) of the standard
licence already contains sufficient power to request recall in those case where risk is
unacceptable after alcohol consumption or where an offender is ejected from the
hostel for breaking hostel rules by consuming alcohol. Recall can also be requested
in such circumstances for a breach of standard condition licence condition (iii).
Offenders cannot be required to comply with an alcohol test.

(c) Offender whose risk levels is increased by using illegal drugs.

10. Conditions requiring an offender to accept testing for drug misuse are
currently being piloted. Subject to the results of the pilots, these conditions will be
rolled out nationally over the next two years. Probation Circular 132/2001 refers.
Until then, Probation Areas outside the pilot areas cannot request a drug testing
licence condition. A condition specifically prohibiting the use of illegal drugs, either
on or off hostel premises, should also be avoided. Condition (vi) of the standard
licence already contains sufficient power to request recall in those cases where risk
is unacceptable after drug misuse. Where an offender is ejected from a hostel for
using drugs against hostel rules, recall can also be requested for a breach of
condition (iii). There is scope under the additional condition (vi) to ensure that
offenders comply with any reasonable request to undergo drug counseling.

(d) Conditions requiring offenders to comply with approved premises

(hostels) or other supervised accommodation rules.

11. Conditions requiring compliance with hostel or other accommodation rules

should be avoided if possible. Hostel and other supervised accommodation rules are
many and varied and it would be difficult to argue that an offender should be recalled
to prison, for example, for a single failure to keep a room clean and tidy or missed
payment of rent. However, if an offender’s consistent refusal to comply with
accommodation rules, which would clearly have to be reasonable, presented a real
risk to staff or other residents which could not be managed in any other way, then it
would be reasonable to seek to recall him under standard conditions (iii) (vi). It is also

3
possible that consistent non-compliance which did not cause a direct risk to staff or
other residents could constitute grounds for seeking recall. It is not possible to give
generic examples of these circumstances and supervising officers are advised to
discuss such cases with ERRS.

(e) Offenders who pose an unacceptable risk to children “not to contact or

associate with any child or young person under the age of 18 years”.

12. In principle there are no legal difficulties with this type of condition but it should
only be used where it is considered to be both necessary and proportionate to risk.
Even in those cases where it is considered appropriate, consideration may have to
be given to practical exceptions, such as contact with family members under 18.
When considering whether a no contact condition is necessary, supervising officers
should bear in mind that there are already additional conditions which can be put into
a licence which prohibit living or working with young persons and where a paedophile
is suggesting by his behaviour that he poses a risk to the public, there is already
power to recall on risk grounds using standard licence condition (vi). A no contact
condition should therefore only be considered in cases where these conditions are
considered to be insufficient to protect children.

13. Probation officers often ask whether to use 16 or 18 in licence conditions

aimed at protecting children. This will depend upon the nature of the risk. Where the
offender’s modus operandi is to groom the offender into agreeing to participate in
sexual acts, the age should normally be 16 in line with the age of consent. In all
other cases it should be 18, unless the only available hostel accommodation allows
residents aged 17 and over and the supervising officer is satisfied that the offender
presents an acceptable risk.

(f) Electronic monitoring conditions “tagging”

14. The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 produced provisions to
enable the Secretary of State to impose electronic monitoring curfew in support of
other conditions of a licence (Probation Circular 115/2001 refers). This condition is
available to any prisoner who was registered with PPU under the Early Warning
System (EWS) as well as to all determinate sentenced prisoners released on licence
into one of the pilot areas. It is not possible at this stage to impose an electronic
monitoring condition upon a prisoner who is not registered under the EWS and is
outside one of the pilot areas. Subject to the outcome of the pilots, the scheme will
be rolled out nationally over the next two years and Chief Officers will be informed of
progress.

15. In addition to licence conditions, supervising officers may find it helpful to use
Sex Offender Orders (SOOs). Greater use is now being made of SOOs including
cases in which the offender is released with a very lengthy period of licence
supervision. The Home Office’s Sentencing and Offences Unit issued detailed
guidance on the use of SOOs in December 2002.

(g) Non-Association conditions

16. It is not possible to insert a general condition preventing an offender from

associating with other ex-offenders. However, it is possible to require an offender not
to associate with named individuals who are closely linked with his previous

4
offending (for example, convicted members of a paedophile ring) or individuals with
whom the supervising officer had good reason to believe that association could lead
to future offending (for example, the offender is a paedophile and might have forged
links with other paedophiles whilst in prison). In cases where the person’s offending
is not linked to a restricted number of individuals, it is more difficult to claim that it is
necessary to have a non association condition.

17. It should also be remembered that where an offender is associating with a

criminal and we had reasonable grounds for suspecting that the association is likely
to lead to re-offending, the offender could be in breach of the good behaviour
condition.

(h) Licence conditions which prevent offenders from using the internet

18. It is possible in certain cases to include a condition which requires offenders

not to access the internet, although this is a difficult condition to monitor and can only
be achieved by restricting the offender’s access to computers. This condition should
only be used where it is necessary and proportionate to manage the risk (such as
members of a paedophile ring who are known to use the internet to distribute
indecent material). Consideration will have to be given to practical exceptions, such
as use of a computer in a work environment. The condition should always, therefore,
be subject to “...without the prior approval of your supervising officer”.

Meaning of Reside

19. Recent court judgments have confirmed that licence conditions formulated in
terms of “you must reside at” (see additional condition (iii)) have the clear effect of
requiring that the licencee spends every night at the place in question. Probation
staff should therefore note that they are able to insist that offenders stay each night in
a particular address and offenders must ask for permission to stay elsewhere.

5
 Appendix 6
st
The Home Secretary’s Directions to the Parole Board – issued 1 May 2004

DIRECTIONS TO THE PAROLE BOARD UNDER SECTION 32(6) OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
ACT 1991

RELEASE OF DETERMINATE SENTENCE PRISONERS

In deciding whether or not to recommend release on licence, the Parole Board shall consider primarily
the risk to the public of a further offence being committed at a time when the prisoner would otherwise
be in prison and whether any such risk is acceptable. This must be balanced against the benefit, both
to the public and the offender, of early release back into the community under a degree of supervision
and which might help rehabilitation and so lessen the risk of re-offending in the future. The Board shall
take into account that safeguarding the public may often outweigh the benefits to the offender of early
release.

2. Before recommending release on parole licence, the Parole Board shall consider:

a) whether the safety of the public would be placed unacceptably at risk. In assessing such risk, the
Board shall take into account:

i) the nature and circumstances of the index offence including any information provided in
relation to its impact on the victim or victim’s family;
ii) the offender’s background, including the nature, circumstances and pattern of any previous
offending;
iii) whether the prisoner has shown by his attitude and behaviour in custody that he is willing to
address his offending behaviour by participating in programmes or activities designed to
address his risk, and has made positive effort and progress in doing so;
iv) behaviour during any temporary release or other outside activities;
v) any risk to other persons, including the victim, their family and friends;
vi) any medical, psychiatric or psychological considerations relevant to risk (particularly where
there is a history of mental instability);
vii) if available, the indication of predicted risk as determined by a validated actuarial risk
predictor;
viii) that a risk of violent or sexual offending is more serious than a risk of other types of offending;

b) the content of the resettlement plan;

c) whether the longer period of supervision that parole would provide is likely to reduce the risk of
further offences being committed;

d) whether the prisoner is likely to comply with the conditions of his licence and the requirements of
supervision, taking into account occasions where he has breached trust in the past;

e) the suitability of home circumstances;

f) the relationship with the supervising probation officer;

g) the attitude of the local community in cases where it may have a detrimental affect upon
compliance; and

h) representations on behalf of the victim in respect of licence conditions.

3. Each individual case shall be considered on its merits, without discrimination on any grounds.
Area Probation Board No of Seconded Officers No of Home Officers

Avon & Somerset 28 72

Bedfordshire 3 42
Cambridgeshire 12 10
Cheshire 36 39
Cumbria 7 19
Derbyshire 13 19
Devon & Cornwall 34 32
Dorset 29 29
County Durham 34 45
Dyfed-Powys 0 23
Essex 10 50
Gloucestershire 6 8
London 72 155
Greater Manchester 32 18
Gwent 8 25
Hampshire 34 18
Hertfordshire 5 30
Humberside 45 35
Kent 56 34
Lancashire 49 18
Leicestershire & Rutland 40 20
Lincolnshire 16 6
Merseyside 21 52
Norfolk 22 87
Northamptonshire 25 7
Northumbria 23 30
North Wales 0 41
North Yorkshire 12 2
Nottinghamshire 21 33
South Wales 26 18
South Yorkshire 23 37
Staffordshire 26 6
Suffolk 24 0
Surrey 23 7
Sussex 14 23
Teeside 18 12
Thames Valley 64 0
Warwickshire 0 16
West Mercia 30 45
West Midlands 17 96
West Yorkshire 33 139
Wiltshire 4 19